Influences of Independency in Milton's Early Life Peter A

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INFLUENCES OF lNDEP.ENDllJCY

IN MILTON'S EARLY LIFE

11 For my own part, I adhere to the Holy Scriptures alone; I follow no other heresy or sect." (Introduction - Christian Doctrine)

BY PEr.ER A. EDMUNDS, B.A.

VJ~ . ·LIBRARY ; . NlVERSITY OF RICHMOND VIRGINIA

A THESIS

SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND

IN CANDDJACY

FOR THE DEGREE OF . MASTER OF ARTS IN ENGLISH FEBRUARY, 1964 ~i·· / .. ' ~

APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH AND THE GRADUATE SCHOOL BY

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f:J Cl/Mt~r .DEAN OF THE G'tDUATE SCHOOL

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPrER -PAGE

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PREFACE • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .iv I. MILTON'S JUVENILIA. • • • • • • • • • • • • .1 II. 11LYCIDAS 11 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .9 III. MILTON'S ANCESTRY • • • • • • • • • • • • • .18 J.V. THOMAS YOUNG. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .31 v. sr. PAUL'S SCHOOL • • • • • • • • • • • •• • .50 VI. THE DIODATI INFLUENCE. • • • • • • • • • • • .71 SUM11ARY. • • • • • .. • • • • • • • • • • • • 92 APPENDIX A. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 99 • 100 APPENDIX B. . -~ . • • • • • • • • • • • • • • BIBLIOGH.APHY • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 101 vrrA. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • lOB .. •'

PREFACE

This thesis is the tiret part or a larger study 'Which will develop the hypothesis that Milton throughout his writing career was an independent and individualist whose church was his own church, whose sect was his own sect, whose thinking,:t;while:1scholarJ.y, was not authoritarian. '• Masson, Gardiner, and all twentieth century students hold that

Milton's religious and ecclesiastical beliefs were Anglican in his youth. Because of Milton's entrance into the church government controversy in 1641-1642 at the age of thirty-four, he has been labeled a Presbyterian. In 1644, when Milton was thirty-six years old, he published Areopagitica.

It was this work according to Miltonic scholars that marked Milton as an independent. One major exception to the contentions of scholarship as swrmarized in the preceding paragraph is found in the writings of John Toland. Toland, one of the earlier deists, published a biography that was a preface to the first edition of Milton's prose in 1698. Influenced by his deistic views in matters of toleration, Toland had a rather low opinion of the Presbyteri- ans for their intolerance. His own opinion, he assumed, was similar to that held by Milton, for he states that Milton's denounciation of.Episcopacy \.. ' . 0 1 "was only a service to the Presbyterians by accident" .for Mi;ltoIH qi\l, ·not I ~ •• ~;.1·~ '',' t) ·-·,1.-14• "• ''l'.'Ji:j~'~ .. intend "by hmnbling the Hierarchy, to set the Consistorian Triburial in the room of it." Since most scholars accept Milton's Christian Doctrine as proof of his heterodox views, one method of substantiating the contention of the larger study is to show that there was no conflict between the religious _, v /

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and ecclesiastical views held by Milton in his youth and those views r:· ' ~ ~ held by- him when he wrote the Christian Doctrine. When Milton wrote the anti-Prelatica+ Tracts, he was not a member of the Presbyterian party as

suggested by many scholars but a member of the Root an~ Branch Party which

contained representatives or all groups, including Anglicans. Later, • when Milton was Latin Secretary or the Council of State, he :wrote a great deal of prose which was more than mere government propaganda. This prose was the result of Milton's personal views. Further evidence of Milton's personal expression is found in A Treatise of Civil Power in Ecclesiastical Causes (1659). In later life Milton wrote Paradise Lost (1674), Paradise Regained (1671), and Samson Agonistes (1671). I believe that these works were the personal expression of the author and reflected only "by accident" · .the tenets of the individual religious parties. Limitations in time and space have not allowed a complete development of this proposed study. The present study is devoted to a thorough

examination of the childhood influences which affected John Milton in his formative years. The influences treated in thisEStudy are those associated with Milton's ancestry, those of Thomas Young, of Alexander Gill, and of the Diodati family. All these influences guided Milton to the position of heterodo:x;y fo\llld in the Christian Doctrine. This study- is negative in one respect. In a survey of Milton's juvenilia, it is pointed out here that no substantial proof can be offered to support the position that ¥dlton was more

than a conforming Anglican in his youth.

Itr thesis is that Milton did develop in his youth, mainly under the

influence or Dr. Gill, a belief in his own reason as an arbitrator in / -_,

theological disputes.· It is this characteristic advanced Protestant view that transcends church and king together with his plea for toleration and his attack on the clergy in "Lycidas" that place him µi this early period already somewhat in the tradition or deism suggested PY 'toland. When

Thomas Paine, the revolutionary deist, wrote in The Age of Reason, "My mind. is m::r own church," he was stating a basic belief of Milton. Thomas Jefferson, another famous deist, eJ(pressed that same thought in a different manner in a letter to Ezra Sj;yles when he stated,, "I am a sect by myself, as far as I know."

The purpose of this paper is to show how Milton's childhood influences could have guided him to a philosophy of religion which would have made it possible for him to give utterance to the ~wo statements quoted in the preceding paragraph.

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CHAPl'ER I MILTON'S JUVENILIA

No conclusive proof can be extracted in a §~y.-.'if\M:U.ton~s juvenilia that would suppctrt the statement that he was only a conform:lng orthodox Anglican. · In fact, there is nothing in his juvcnilia that di-. rectly' contradicts the heterodox beliefs that Milton sets forth in the Christian Doctrine.

When one considers Milt•n'a active participation in the church government controversy, it is. surprising to discover practically no indication of interest in this matter in his earlier writ:ings.l :rn discussing Milton's later writings fro~ 1625-1626, Rose Macaulay states that "there is little personal expression in any of this Latin verse, except the rustication poem."2 One could expand this statement by saying that a review uf Milton's earlier works gives no indication of ,. acceptance or rejection to any religious party, nor any indication as to Milton's conception of what the proper church government sheuld be. The on• major exception te this is "Lycidas." ·

The peems selected for tthis discussion represent Milton 1 s religious writings of this peried. If Milton were to show a preference for a religious party in this period, that preference would be noticeable in

1 Fer purposes of this study the period of Milton's juvenilia en~s with Epitaphiun Damonis. See James Holly Hanferd, "The Youth of Milton," in Studies din Shakespeare, Milton, and Denne (New York, 1935), p. 154. . 2 Rose Macaulay-, Milton (New Yerk, 1935), p. 13. 2 .. •'

one of the poems which will now be discussed. The first poem to be con

, sidorod is "Ode on the Momin& 0£ Chriet 1 s Nativity. 11

11 0DE ON THE MORNING OF CHRIST'S NATIVITY"

On or after Christmas Day in 1629 Milton wrote 11 0de on the Morning of Christ's Nativity." This ode has been described as perhaps the most. beautiful in the English language. More important to this paper is the title with its theological implications. The poet in the introduction to the "Hymn" represent" the ode as a gift to the "infant God" in commemor- ation of Christmas. Say, heavenly muse, shall not thy sjcred vein Afford a present to the Infant God? The "Hymn" describes the birth of t;hrist and its effect'on nature and the heathen gods. The Egyptian Oris is among those heathen gods not at e.i.'se. 4

He feels from Juda 1 s land The dreaded Infant's hand; The rays of Bethlehem blind his dusky eyne; · . Nor all the Gods be side · Longer dare abide; Not 'fyphon huge ending in snakey twine: Our Babe, to show his godhead true, Can in his swaddling hands control the damned crew.5

As to the actual theological statements .found in "Ode on the Morning of Christ's Nativity," we find the following:

Wherein-the son of Heav 1ns etern.U King of wedded maid and virgin bom Our great Redemption. • •

" 3 "Ode on the Morning of Christ's Nativity," Columbia Edition of the Works of John }Ii.lton (New Yerk, 1931-1938), vol. I, p. 1. (Hereafter C. E.) 4 David Masson, The Life of John Milton (New York, 1946), I, 228-229. 5 C. E., I, 10.

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That he our deadly forfeit should Release, and with his father work Us perpetual peace •••wherewith He want at Heav'ns high Council-Table~ to sit the midst of Trinal unity.

The Babe lies yet in smiling infancy That on the bitter cross must redee~ Our loss; so both himself and us to glorify.7 We learn that Milton believed that Christ was of divine origin and was crucified for our redemption. Milton also believed that Christ continues to work for our Redemption. His expression of "to sit the midst of Trinal unity" may be interpreted as the orthodox expression of the Trinity.or it may not. · From his statements in the Christian Doctrine, emJ?hasis could be placed on the later interpretation.

One ie .tempted to make the statement that Milten in making Christ's crucifixion "our great Redemption," has at this early point rejected predestination, and believes that Christ's crucifixion has redeemed everyone.

However, as is typical in all of Milton 1 s juvenilia, the orthodox Calvinistic view of predestination can also be construed.

An imJM>rtant figure of the ode is the Platonic music of the spheres, which is equated with the song of the heavenly host and with that which the sons of morning sang together in the book of Job. This thought was not new, as it appeared in Milton's second prolusion. In the "Nativity Ode" he tells us that once the divine music was heard miraculously by men, their penalty of sin being suspended for the moment in honor of the Savio1:Is birth. If

6 ~., p. 1. 7 Ibid,, p. 7. / 4 1'

this music had continued, sin would have Seased and t~e golden nge would have returned.a

That part of the poem which deals with Christ' is severely: 'Protes-n t tant. Christ is represented as the 11 pc>wer of pure religion, the heroic idea of truth, combating error, binding the old dragon in stricter lim.:i.ts, putting to flight the host of milltiform divinities whom man in his igno- ranee' has created and bowed down to. 11 9 When contrasting this view with the simplicity or the carols or nativity plays, we ~ee that Milton's de votion is stern and severe. On the other hand there is a thread of clear serenity and reverent wonder which expresses the solemnity of the moment in perhaps an tmsurpassable manner.lo Rose Macaulay has placed her emphasis on a review of the classical

.and pagan ·influences in her discussion of the "Nativity Ode. 11 She describes it as .follows:

This exciting hymn, too rich, as some think, in irrelevant ornarnent, too baroque, too many-conceited, is a magnificent burst ef emotional vitality and luxuriant imagery.· It is not markedly no~ exclu sively Christian in tone.ll It is decorated not only with the heav'n-born Child. • • • but with Nature and the Sun her lusty paramour, the Halc~n •• • , fettered ghosts and yellow-skirted f ayes flying after night-steeds. These creatures are introduced with loving exilberance~; a damned crew,

8 James Holly' Hanford, John Milton, Engliehb;lan (New York, 1949) 1 p. 35. 9 .!Q.!g. 10 .!Q.!9..

11 Macaulay, P• 17. ,... ' 5 -_,

such as Comus lead, forms, in the run of verse1 tho pattoni of eo•o magnificent figure dance.l~

Rose Macaulay ends her col1lllentacy on the "Nativity Ode" in a highly eulogiac manner when she states: There is no austerity about the rich riot of the nativity; rather the turbulent intellectual and emotion.U. ecstasy of the young man spreading the wings or his genius, and in love with poetry.13 The apparent influence fjf Virgil and Fletcher on the "Nativity Ode" will not be discussed,.:.as:·such a discussion is outside the scope of this thesis~14

Nothing is said in the "Nativity Ode" which conflicts with the views expressed in the Christililll Doctrine. Furthermore, we learn nothing about his beliefs in ecclesiastical natters.

"UPON THE CIRCUMCISION"

In 1934. Milton wrote "Upon the Circwncion. 11 This poem is a traditional treatment or two subjects, the antinomian controversy and the Atonement. The traditional views expressed in this poem. correspond to those views· on antinontianiSIJ. and the Atonement found in the Christian Doctrine.

0 more exceeding love, or law more just? Just law indeed, but more exceeding love.15

12 ,ThM. 13 Ibid. 14 For a brief discussion of these influences see Hanford, John Milten, Englishman, p. 35.

15 "Upon the CircUIJlcision:, ·~ ~, I, 26-27. · ,/ 6

Love in this sense refers to the Covenant of the New Testament, which promises salvation for those who believe in Christ. Tp.e Law is the

Mosaic Law, which according to the doctrines preached by Luther and

Calvin, was superseded by the New Covenant for the faithful. "Milton !irids.the Law just; but superseded by Christ's 'more exceeding love! 1111? . Milton treats the Atonement in the S3le conventional manner. For we, by rightful doom remediles Were lost in death, till he that dwelt above High-thron 1d in secret bliss, for us frail dust F.mptied his glory, ev'n to nakednes; And that great Cov'nant which we still tran~gress · Intirely satisfHg., And the full wrath beside Of vengeful Justice have for our excess, And seals obedience first with wounding smart This day, but o ere long · Huge pangs and strong will pierce more near his heart.17 Nathaniel H. Henry has pointed out that "the crux of orthodoxy" in the

Circtu:.cision poem is: "And that great Cov 1nant which we still transgress

Intirely satisfi'd. 1118 It is by studying this line that the true meaning of the poem unfolds. Christ in being crucified, fulfilled the con dition of the New Covenant, not the Old Covenant. Therefore, "that great

Covenant" refers to the New Covenant. In the line "!pdt.the;::£Ull.1·:wrath beside of vengeful.J.Justice," Milton appears to have meant that Christ died in our place. This is in direct opposition to the Socinian view which held that Christ's death was meant as an example for us to follow as a ll1eans te achieve salvation.

16 Nathaniel H. Henry, Milton's Puritanism (Doctoral Dissertation, University of North Carolina, 1941), p. 334.

17 "Upon the Circumcision," Q, E• .u I. 27. 18 Henry, P• 334. / 7

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Henry's next statement is important to the development of the thesis that Milton's earlier works were nonconunital in matters of theol~gy. "But Milton's very early poems may be said to be a r!l'lation of theological 1 legends rather, than dogmatic treatments of the problems of doctrine. 1119

How much of Milton's a~tual theological beliefs are encompassed in this "relation of theologicaJ. J.egend" it is difficult to be dogmatic about: A comparison of the "Nativity Ode" and "Upon the Circumcision" reveals at once striking similarities and dissimilarities. We notice none of the classical and pagan influences which Rose Macaulay pointed out in the "Nativity Ode." "Upon the Circumcision" is exclusively I Christian in tone whereas the "Nativity Ode" perhaps is not. Perhaps it is this lack of classical and pagan influences which causes Hanford to say Milton strives to.frame his thoughts to sadness in remembrance of Christ's sacrifice, symbolically suggested according to religious convention by the event which he conunemorates, but the Muse witholds her wanted blessing on his endeavor. Only in the opening, where the poet is dealing momentarily with his native theme of the celestial song which attended the birth of Christ, does he achieve real beauty of feeling and expression.20 The similarities are as apparent as the dissimilarities. Milton introduces the image of the Platonic music of the spheres in "Upon the

Circumcision," the same image which played such a dominant role in the "Nativity Ode." ·Ye flaming Powers, and winged Warriors bright, ·That erst with Musick and triumphant song,

19 Ibid. 20 Hanford, "The Youth of Milton," pp. 134-135. 8 / .. •'

First heard b1 happ1 watchful Shepherds e~r, So sweetly sung your Joy the Clouds along, · Through the soft silence of the listning night.21 Once again the subject of Atonement is discussed, with a more complete treatment appearing in "Upon the Circumcision." Milton uses the pronouns "we" and "us" in discussing the Atonement, which again makes one wonder whether he believes in Atonement for all, or as in the Calvinistic doctrine, Atonement for'the selected few. The conclusion to be drawn is that either interpretation is acceptable.

' 21 "Upon the Circumcision," C. E,, I, 26. I CHAPTER II "LYCIDAS"

On August 10, 1637, &iward King, an alumnus of Christ's College, w;.s drowned in the Irish Sea. "Lycidas" was Milton's contribution to a.. collection of memorial verses, Latin, Greek, and English, entitled Obsequies to the Memory of Mr, Edward King, Anno Dom. 1638.1

King had attended Christ's College with Milton and had re~ined there as Fellow until 16J4. Both Milton and King had been destined for the Church, and King may have been on intimate terms with Milton. Milton seems to have known no details of the dro"Wlling, as he omits circumstances which were included in the other contributor's memorial verses. In fact, little knowledge of King as a person is to be gained by reading "Lycidas. 11 "Lycidas is simply the poet apparently destined for God's peculiar service and unaccountably cut off before he has begun to .fulfill his destiny. 112

The emotional content of "Lycidas" is not sorrow over the death of a promising young clergyman, rather it is the impact which such a death had on Milton. Douglas Bush sunmi.arizes the significance of this event in the following m~er:

• • • the drowning of a virtuous young man at once crystalizes and releases all Milton's ·thoughts and feeling about his own past, present, and future and about the great Task-Master's will. And this

· l Jaes Holly Hanford, A Milton Handbook (New York, 1954), p. 166. 2 Hanfgrd,, John Milton, Englishman, p. 69. ,.. I io

inexplicable event adds its heavy weight to the ennui, the paralysing doubts, which may attack.· the most zealous student after five long years of hard lllld unprofitable toil.3 Bush inmgines Milton asking himself whether or not this dedication to a life of learning was of value, whether or not that life could be ended without achieving fame. To Milton the answer lies in the imagery of

Revelation. The acceptance of Ly~idas into heaven banishes the last shad- ow of doubt. Bush continues by saying: Thus beneath the smooth surface of a conventional elegy, ebbing and flowing with motives of the pastoral pattern, the waves of regret, anger, despair, tllld resolution roll upon one another. The spiritual struggle goes on before our eyes, rising steadily in intensity, momentarily assuages or aggravated by the irregularly sweet or thunderous music, until the last movement asserts the victory of ..faith in a triumphant gl:ilnpse of the sure glory·of heaven. Life is vindi cated and serenity is won.4 Most scholars' are in agreement with Bush in feeling that there is little information about Edward King in "Lycidas." It is for this 'reason, among others, that Dr. Samuel Johnson criticizes "Lycidas. 11

It is not to be considered as the effusion of real passion; for passion runs not after remote allusions and obscure opinions. Passion plucks no berries from the myrtle and ivy, nor calls upon the Arethuse and Hincius, nor tells of rough satyrs and 1fei.uns with cloven heel. 1 Where there is leisure for fiction there is little grief.5

3 Douglas Bush,. English Literature in the Earlier Seventeenth Century (Oxford, 1945), P• 386. 4 Ibid.

5 SiUlluel Johnson, Chief Lives of the Poets (New York, 1889), "Milton," ppl 42-43. ,... '· 11

The quotation above should be read with the understanding that Johnson did not have a p!ign:::opinion of the pastoral elegy as a liter•ry form nor of Milton as an individual. He considers this form to be "easy, vulgar, and therefore disgusting." Johnson feels all originality is lost in using the pa.storal elegy_ ·and contends that the improbability inherent in a pastoral elegy "always forces dissatisfaction on the mind. 6 The current state of scholarship seems to regard 11 Lycidas11 with more esteem than did Johnson.

Even if "Lycidas11 were not important as a revelation of Milton's doubts and anxieties concerning his career in 1637, it would still have to be considered in this thesis. The introduction to "Lycidas11 in the 1645 edition adds comments of importance to the poem.

In this :Monody the author bewails a learned Friend unfortunately drown'd in his Passage from Ghester on the Irish Seas, 1637. And by occasion ~oretells · the ruin of our cGrrupted Clergy then in their height.7

This digression begins ~ith line one hundred and nine and continues through line one hundred thirty one. The significance of this passage must be emphasized, for as Nathaniel H. Henry states, "The angry speech of Saint Peter in 'Lycidas1 may be t-.ken as Milton's first expressed dis satisfaction with ecclesiasticaJ. institutions. 118 l{ilton's choice of Saint Peter as the spokesmcui to deliver such a striking condemnation of the clergymen was a deliberate one. It was to

6 .!!&1., p. 43. 7 "Lycidas," C.. E., I, 71. 8 Henry, p. 337. Saint Peter that Christ entrusted the.'guardianship of His church and the keys to the kingdom of heaven. With this guardianship Saint Peter was looked upon by the early Christians as the first Bishop of Rome. The bishops in Milton's England considered theJ:J.selves immediate succossors to Saint Peter and the apostles, and therefore endowed by the Savior wi~h the s.u:ie powers ~s was Saint Peter.9 Milton was not being hypocritical when he struck at the prelates through the voice of their beloved First Bishop. He recognized the fact that this position rested primarily on Biblical. and historical texts and was both dogma.tic and traditional.. Proof of this is contained in the Reason of Church Government. No lesse to the contempt of him whom they fain to be the archfounder of prelaty St. Peter, who by what ho writes in the Fifth Chapter. of his first Epistle, should seem. to be for another man than tradition re ports him: There he commits to the presbyters only full authority, both of the feeding the flock and cpiscopating: and commands that obedience be given to them as to the mighty hand of God, which is his lllighty ordinance. Yet tll this was as nothing to repel the venturous boldness of innovation that en sued, changing the decrees of God that are immutable, as if they had been breathed by man.lo Thus Milton, in introducing Saint Peter, is condei:ning the corrupt clergy not only for breaking the laws of God, but for breaking the Corranandments of Saint Peter as well. One has only to look at Saint Peter 1 s first epistle, the fifth chapter, to find the itext of Milton's attack against the clergy.

9 Vergilius T. A. Ferm, ed., Encyclopedia of Religion (New York, 1945), p. 579 •

. 10 The Reason of 'Church Government, C. E., III, 193. ./ l3

Tend the Flock of God, that is your charge not by constraint but willingly, not for shameful g1d.n but eagerly, not as domineering over those in your charge .but being examples to tho flock. In Matthew: chapter XVI, 19, we find the following: And I will give unto t.hee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: ~d whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. · It is from this statement that tradition and dogma give Saint Poter uni- fied and unqualified executive power. Tho openjng lines of tho digression on the corruption of the clergy begin "Two massy Keys he bore of mettls twain the Golden Gpes, the Iron shuts ~afu'.'~0.ll.' Milton then begins his attack on the clergy. "Enough of such as for their bellies' ·sake, creep, and intrude, and climb into the fold." In these lines Milton reveals two grievances against tho clergy. The first grievance has to do with the

personal character of the clergymen. "For their bellies' sake 11 indicates

Vdlton 1 s scorn of the clergy for their lack of dedication to their calling

and their misplaced sense of values. 11 Creep, and intrude, and climb into the fold," points out Milton's dissatisfaction with the method of taking ministerial orders in the Church of England. Once again a Bible passage

is evidently the source of Milton's words. From John 10: 1 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheep fold by the door but climbs in by another way, that mm is a thief and a robber •. Milton's attack is continued in the following lines:

Of other care they little reck 1ning make, Than how to scramble at the shearer's feast, And shove away the worthy hidden guest.

ll 111.ycidas, 11 Q:....[., I; 80-Sl, 11. 103-131. L__ ------/ 14 \ \

Milton in this passage attacks the bishops, who were not fulfilling their duties and responsibilities to the people. He feels a strong resentment toward the bishops who were dependent on the "whore Plurality" to benefit themselves. In the Reason of Church Government Milton expressed his belief • that "discipline is the practice work of preaching, directed and applied,"

and the most iruportant factor in church government. In "Lycidas, 11 five years before the Reason of Church Government, Mil.ton wrote: Blind Mouths! Thllt scarce themselves know how to hold A Sheep-hook, or have learnt oUght else the least; That to the faithful Herd.man's art belongs. It appears obvious in this passage that Milton is·addressing the Bishops.

The term "Blind .V.iouths1 11 has been ably explained· by John Ruskin.12 A

"Bishop" means 11 !!~· pezrsoni.wh11>:.secs. 11 A "Pastor" means "a person who feeds." Therefore a blind bishop and a pastor who, instead of feeding, want to be

fed - to be a mouth ~ is perhaps the crowning insult to the bishops in "Lycidas.1113 Milton not only felt that discipline was the most important factor in church government, but he·also1Telt that discipline was the only removal

of disorder in the church. The bishops with "sheep-book(s), 11 were not fulfilling the commands of Saint Peter nor their obligation to the people.

12 John Ruskin, Ses~e and Lilies (New York, 1907), pp. 18-19. 13 John A. Himes challenges Ruskin's interpretation. Himes, based on the ground that the term blind-nouthed was applied by Strabo to shallow outlets to the sea, interprets "Blind Mouths!" as shallowness rather than greed •. See John A. Himes, "Some Interpretations of Milton," Modern Language Notes x.x:xY (November, 1920) 441. What reeks it them? What need they? They are sped; And when they list, their lean and flashy songs Grate on their scrannel pipes of wretched straw. In this passage Milton is charging the clergy with utter disregard of their church ..duties and with the preaching of meaningless sermons.

The next three lines of 11 Lycidas11 have as their :text Christ 1 s ·• instructions to Saint Peter, which were "feed my sheep," and with these words Saint Peter became the shepherd of His flock. As the first bishop of Rome, Saint Peter -and,.;-his successors, the bishops, were, according to standard dogma, the spiritual parents.of the sheep. The food by which Saint Peter was to feed the sheep was the spiritual food of doctrine. The hungry Sheep look up and are not fed, But swoln with wind, and the rank mist they draw Rot inwardly, and foul contagion spread: • • • Milton is commenting once again on the inability of the prelates and priests to be of any real spiritu:il. benefit to the people even thoueh the church had won a multitude or conversions. Milton writes "Besides what the grim Wolf with privy. paw daily devours apace, and nothing said. 11 Much discussion has resulted in Milton's phrase "grim. Wolf." Merritt Y. Hughes states that the wolf "is a symbol of the Roman Catholic Church. 11 14 Other scholars believe that Milton was attacking William Laud specifically and the expression "privy paw" represents the Star-Chamber. Support for the latter theory is found in the diary of William Laud himself. In this diary, on July 7, 1637, he entered the following notation: "Friday, a note waslbrought to me of a short libel pasted on the cross in Cheapside:

14 Merritt Y. Hughes, ed., John Milton Complete Poems and Major Prose (New York, 1957),, pp. 117-118. .. ·

That the Arch-Wolf of Cant. had his hand in persecuting the saints and ehedding tho blood of the inartyx-e. 11 15 In view of Laud's "Period 0£

Thorough" and Milton's probable acqu:dntance with Laud 1 s methods, the latter interpretation is perhaps the better interpretation.

Milton concludes his condemnation of the clergy in tho following sentence. But that two-handed engine at the door, Stands ready to smite once and smite no morel l1erritt Y. Hughes states that there are over forty guesses as to the meaning of this aJnbiguous phrase~l6 W. A. Turner in summarizing most of these guesses concludes that the two s:lllctions of death and dOl.lnllation are represented by the two-hcandedness of the engine. This interpretation would then be supported by the imagery of the golden and iron keys, which in the beginning of the digression, also represent the sanctions of death and damnation. Another interpretation by W. J. Grace pJ..i. ces the "two-handed engine" in apposition with the "grim Wolf, 11 11 Wolf 11 meanmg in this case the

Roman Catholic Church •. The result:ln g meaning is that the Roman Catholic Church, working "through its twin superstitious appeals of hope of gain and fear of consequence is ready to mount one more attack on England, al though its day_s are numbered and its defeat is imminent. rrl 7

While W~ J. Grace's interpretation is interesting, there seems to be more support for the prevailing tendency, which is to interpret

15 The Diary of William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury (Wharton, 1694), quoted in Robert P. Tristram Coffin, ed., Seventeenth Century Prose and Poetry (New York, 1946), p. 150.

16 Hughes, pp. 117-118.

17 W. J. Gr~ce; "Paradise Lost," Studies in Philology LII (October, 1955), 583-591. this passage theologically. In Paradise Lost the following passage is found in support cf the theological interpretation of the "two-h.inded engine. 11 ••• where the Sword of Michael smote, and fell'd Squadrons at once, with huge two-hm1ded sway.18 One is tempted to assume that Milton's position on tho church government controversy was the same in "Lycidas" as it was in Milton's anti-Prelatica.J. Tracts begun four years later. However, as Nathaniel H. Henry points out, using Verity's Ode on the Nativity••• and Lycidas as a reference, Milton was attacking the corrupted clergy within:·' the.- es-.· tablished church .nd not the church system itsel.f'.19

18 11 P01.radise Lost," c. E., II, 186. 19 Henry, P• 338. CHAPrffi III

MILTON'S ANCESTRY

There have been many studies conducted on single important in fluences during Milton's early life. For instance, studies have been lrulde to determine the extent of the 11 hwnanistic11 :influence on Milton 1 s ·•

schooling. Scholars have also amassed a great deal of infor~tion on individual people who figure dominantly in Milton's early years. Examples of this type arc The English Diodatis by Donald Clayton Dorian and John

Milton at St. Poa.ul 1 s School by Donald Lemen Clark. \'Jhat seems to be lacking in the current state of scholarship on Milton is an examination of the similarities to be found among most of the people who influenced l'fdlton during his formative years. It is the purpose of the survey below to fill this gap in the current state of scholarship, and by so doing)support the thesis of this paper. Almost all of the people who played an important role in Milton's childhood were men of steadfast convictions and were not ,fraid to defend these publicly if the need arose. Furthermore most of them suffered reli gious persecution for their theological beliefs. It is the contention of this thesis that these people were the ones who impressed upon Milton, either consciously or unconsciously, the great need for religious toler

ation. In his childqood Milton had occasion to respect members of the Anglican· faith as well as those of the Puritan faith. It would then be a short step for Milton to develop a sense of nonconformity and, finally, conplete independency. , ,.. 19 -·

A study of Milton's ancestry reveals a great deal of sih1ilarity between succeeding generations. Richard Milton, the poet's grandfather, was a Roman Catholic of deep religious conviction. Displaying that trait of nonconformity which was to become more and more prominent with each succeeding generation of the Milton :ramily,;.he w:i.s fined for non-attenqance

at church in 1601, his nii1lle appearing twice on the Rescusant Rolls for that year. This characteristic deep religious conviction and nonconformity was passed on to the elder John Milton, who was disinherited by his father for being a Protestant. John Milton, the poet, carried nonconformity to

a greater length as evidenced by his heterodox views set forth in the Christian Doctrine.

The three succeeding generations of ~lilton 1 s f:unily show an addition-

al trait besides that of nonconformity. This trait is the faith in one's reason to choose the relieion which is best for that individual. Again, as in the case of the quality of nonconformity, this tendency grows stronger with each succeeding generation. It is. the existence of these characteristic traits that make a survey of the poet's ancestry necessary •.

' Great.'.difficultyva~ises when Milton 1 s ancestry is traced beyond the poet's father. The three accounts that serve as a basis from which all later accounts are derived are those of John Aubrey, Anthony a Wood, and

John Phillips. In Aubrey's account we find these statements: Mr. John Milton was of an Oxfordshire familie: his grandfather. • .f:a Rom. Cath._7 of Holton in Ox.rordshire, near Shotover. His father was brought up in Ye Univ. of Oxon at Christ Church; /

and his gr-father disinherited him because he l<~pt not to tho C~l.hol:lqu" Hnl:I f~ion LLondon and became a scrive ner {"brou,&ht up by a friend o.f his, .Was not an 1 apprentic~ ••• and got a plentiful estate by it. Ma.sson deduces from Aubrey's sketch of the pedigree of Milton's

!am.J..y. tho following: (1) That Aubrey had heard that the Christian name of the poet's grandfather, as well as of his father, had been John: (2) That he believed that the Oxfordshire town or village where this grandfather lived, if not HGlton, was at all e vents the 'next town to Forest Hill;' (3) That he had heard that the Milton's thereabouts, this grandfather included, were 'rangers of the Forest' in that neighborhood, ie of the Forest of Shotover.2 1-Iasson's interpretation of Aubrey's manuscript is further substantiated by Anthony a Wood's account of l'd.lton 1 s family written in 1692. His father, Joh. Milton, who was a scrivener living at the Spread-Eagle in the said street, was a native of Holton in Oxfordshire. • .His grandfather Ytllton, whose Christian name was John, as he L-AubreiJ thinks, was an underranger or keeper of the Forest of Shotover near to the said,town of Holton, but descended from those Gf his narae who had lived beyond all record at Ytllton near Holton and Thane in Oxfordshire. Which grandfather being a zealous Papist did put away, or, as ~ome say, disinherited his son because he was a Protestant; Which made him retire to London to seek, in a manner, his fortune.3 · · Phillip's account contributes little that is original to Aubrey's account.

ed. 1 Oliver Lawson Dick, Aubrey's Brief Lives (London, 1950), p. 199.

2 Masson, I, 9. 3 Helen Darbishire, ed., Early Lives of Milton (Lsn4on, 1932), p. 35. ,. / 21

His Father, John Milton, an honest, worthy, and substanti;J. citizen of London, by profession a scrivener; To· which profession he voluntarily be took himself, by the· advice and assistance of an intimate friend of his eminent in that calling, upon his being cast out by his father, a bigoted Ro1nan Catholic, for embracing, when young, the Protestant faith and ab,juring the Papi.sh tenets; for he is said to have been descended of an an cient family of the Miltons of I'-lilton near. Abington in Oxfordshire; •••4

Nasson states 11 as to the alleged Miltona of Milton in Oxfordshire, the remote progenitors of the poet, research has been fruitless. 11 5 Masson discovered records of Miltons living in the Parish of Stanton St. Johns, but more in Holton. The only records in existence identifying Hilton as having lived in Holton a.re those of Aubrey and Wood. ~sson 1 s proof con- sists of the wills of Henry Milton of Stanton St. Johns, and of Agnes

Milton, widow of Henry Milton, found in the Bishop's Registry a.t Oxford. Masson.declares with conviction that these Miltons were definitely the great-grandfather and great-grandmother of the poet. More important, they are described as "remaining faithful to the last to the old Roman Catholic religion. 11 6· From this marriage, as shown in both wills, a son Hichard was born.

Again Masson is positive that this was John VdJ.ton 1 s grandfather. Further proof of Richard Milton's existence is found in 1577, when his name appears in the nineteenth Subsidy Roll of Elizabeth. Although the subsidy charged was only three pol.lllds, Masson points out the deception here when determining

4 Ibid., pp. 50-51. 5 Masson, I, 10.

6 ~., p. 15. 22

a man's financial condition. Both lands and goods wero assessed at sums a groat deu.l below their renl. va.J.ue. Ma.neon !eeie that the importunco 0£ this Subsidy Roll should not be overlooked, for Hichard was the only Milton in Oxfordshire assessed on that occasion. Masson has constructed a strong case for naming Ri~hard as the grandfather of the poet, John Milton. His ., next point seems to confuse rather than substantiate his claim that Richard l1ilton was indeed the grandfather of the poet. He first mentions that Richard Milton was either serving, or elected to serve, as churchwarden in his parish in 1582. He states that Richard Milton was fined in 1601 for being a Recusant, meaning that he was fined for non-attendance at his parish church. These records, as in the case of the Subsidy Rolls, indicate .that Richard Milton was the only· l'rl.lton whose notme occurs on the Recusant

Rolls in Oxfordshire. Masson explains these seemingly irreconcilable facts by saying that the election to the post of churchwarden was no election, but merely his turn to serve in this position.? John Fletcher summarizes this confusion when he says that "· • • ·it is difficult to see how the same individu-.1 could have been a churchwarden and could also appear on the

Recusant Rolls. 11 8

A summary of Milton's geneology might proceed in the following rll4U1Iler. John Milton's father came from an area a little east of Oxford. Richard was the name of the poet's paternal grandfather. If this Richard Milton was the same on discussed by Masson, then John Milton's paternal great-grandparents were Henry and Agnes. Richard Milton had a son,.:Joh;l~

?:Ibid., p. 17.

B Harris Francis Fletcher, The Intellectual Development of John 11:ilton (Urbana, 1956), ·I, b• -.

who bec-.rne the London scrivener. The London scrivener begat a son who was John Milton the poet. Fletcher feels that proving that tho Richard Mil.ton discussed by &.sson weis the poet's great-grandfather would be of little value other

thom pushing Hilton's line back nearly half a century. Knowledge of the

line, as traced by Masson, sheds.::.little .light on Milton 1 s inherent ca.pac it;i.es as a poet. Fletcher finds this point striking, "for the peculiar

eibilities of the poet would seem to stem from a background of intense

interest in verbal expression.''9

Although the proof of this line of ancestry seems of little.value to Fletcher, it assumes tremendous importance to this paper when consid

ering the relationship of this line to the church. Henry ~lilton and his wife, Agnes, according to Nasson, represent the first Miltona of record in the poet's ancestral line. Masson says they were both dead by 1562. Assundng this·date to be correct, they probably lived through the reigns

of Henry VIII, Edward VI, and Nary, just touching that of ~lizabeth. Masson, without reservation, states that they remained "faithful to the last to the old Roman Catholic Religion." Thus is seen the first seed of nonconformity in Milton's ancestry. Henry and Agnes Milton probably suffered less for their religious beliefs then did their son, Richard. Confornri.ty under the .!Jl.Onarchs of their day was far less painful than

IlO!lconformity. There can be no doubt that Richard Milton suffered financioWJ.y for his religious beliefs. As early as 1582, Masson states that Richard

9 Ibid. ,. / 24

was openly a Roman Catholic, -.lthough we are not told the evidence for

this claim. Proof of Richard Milton's orice of nonconformity can be found

in the 1601 Recusant Rolls, where it is written that he was fined sixty pounds for non-attendance at church. This was not tho only fine levied on Richard Milton in the year 1601. The first fine covered the time froiz1. December, 1606, to February, 1601. Richard Milton was again fined for

non-attendance from July thirteenth to October fourth of the same year,

the amount being another sixty pounds. Richard Milton, perhaµs the poet's grandfather, was a man of strong convictions and suffered for his religious beliefs. If the accounts of the early biographers can be believed,' this same Richard Milton disinherited his son, John Milton, the elder, because his son "kept not to the Catholique religion."

If we assume Masson is correct in his tracing of Milton's ancestral

line, the influence of this line coincides with other childhood influences treated in this thesis. JOHN MILTON, TH.J!.: ELDIB John Milton, the elder, was born probably early in October, 1563, at or near Stanton St. Johns in Oxfordshire. Most biographers agree that the elder John 1{ilton attended Oxford College, but there are no records at Oxford to confirm this fact. His date of attendance is the subject of much controversy. Edward Phillips and John Aubrey indicate that his attendance was at the time of the visit of the Polish Prince, Alasco in 1583. This assumption arises from the fact that a gift was given to

11i.lton from Alasco in recognition of a composition dedicated to Alasco. - 25

The Palatine was.not out of char.acter with his token gift to Milton.

Reports of Alasco' s prodigality are found in al.most··~ 6£ the chronicles:.:. All accounts agree that musical performances were among the entertairunents provided the Palatine and that, like the other forms of entertainment, they 1aust have bee~ elaborate. They must have provided a liberal educa tion for the participants as well as the spectators. lO

In 1583, or shortly thereafter, the elder John Milton graduated from Ox.ford and came to London. On arriving in London, he went to the home of a relative by the name of Christopher Hilton who easily persuaded

John Milton to become an apprentice in the scrivener's profession. , After serving a normal apprenticeshi? of approximately seven years, he became active in the business and in 1600 was admitted a freeman of the Company.11 The year 1600 can truly be considered thetturning point for the

scrivener. In this year he married Sarah Jeffr.~ys, was made free of the Scrivener's Company, and acquired a house on Bread Street. In all proba- bility it was the wealth brought to this marriage by the wife which caused the affluence surrounding the poet from birth until the Restoration. For this reason it can be safely assumed that the marriage was probably the first of three major events occurring in 1600 to the elder John Milton.12

10 Ibid., p. 10. 11 This.paragraph represents a combination of the views of Harris Francis.Fletcher and William Parker concerning the time gap between Milton's graduation and his admission to the Scrivener's Company in 1600. See Fletcher, The Intellectual Development of John Milton, I, 12, and William R. P~ker, 11 John Milton, Scrivener," Modern Language Notes LIX (December, 1944), 534. 12 Fletcher, p. 16. / 26 -·

With one exception Masson paints a s6und.pict~re of the activities

0£ the elder John Milton in his new house on Bread Street. He intimates that the scrivener had 11 puritanical" leanings. 1~ Nathaniel H. Henry's dissertation on the puritanism of the poet, John MiltonJgives the following definition of ":Puritanism. n 11Th.e Puritans were Anglican nonconformists during the reigns of Elizabeth and the Stuarts - English Protestants. 11 14 In defining Puritanism in such a broad sense, Henry is following the sug - ges~ion of Keneth Murdock who states

The literary student needs a definition generous enough to include John Robinson, Roger Williams, Nathaniel Ward, Bradford, and Winthrop, as well ·as Baxter, Bunyon, Milton, and ¥.a.rvell, and comprehen sive enough to cover Plymouth Separatists as well as Massachusetts Independents, Congregationalists, Baptists and Seeker. • • .15 Even with this broad definition of Puritanism, it would ·be difficult to place the scrivener in this group. One of the outstanding reasons for the belief that he was an Anglican is the fact that his;relatives were buried in the confines of an Anglican Church. On May 12, 1601, the records of All Hallows Bread Street Church show that a "crysome childe" of John

Milton was buried in the church. On February 26, 16ll, another relative of the scrivener was buried in the church. This time it was Mrs Helyn

13 ~., p. 48. Fletcher states, "that he had what Masson called 'puritanical' leanings is today best explained by hi§ friendship with Richard Stock and other rectors and curates of All Hallows Bread Street." I have not been able to locate Fletcher's source for his statement that Masson thought that the elder John Milton had "puritanical" leanings. 14 Henry, p. 35.

15 ill£• Quoted from Keneth Murdock's, "The Puritan lrradition, 11 The ReinterDretation of American Literature (New York, 1928), pp. 88-89. , / 27

Jeffreys, who was the elder John Milton's mother-in-law.

More evidence of Milton's importance in the church lies in the manner in which these events were recorded in.the church records. The entries involving the Mil.ton family tend to be relatively long and seem to reflect the standing of the scrivener in his parish.16

Almost all scholars agree that the elder John ~1ilton 1 s business flourished to such·an extent that he soon became a substantial citizen and parishioner. Generally his associates could be described as men noticed for their "pious sobriety of conduct in everyday practice,," but also for "an easy enjoyment of the more attractive pleasures of life, such as.music, painting and the arts generally, coupled with ecclesi astical discussion and disputes. 11 17 · The elder John Mil.ton seems to have been affriendly, kindly individual, who had no difficulty winning one's _confidence. As evidenced by the fairly large fortune he amassed, he was shrewd or at least fortun- a.te in his business affairs. He appears to have carried out his family responsibilities with gentle wisdom and was successful in looking after the interests of his kinfolk.18

We find in Ad Patrem a clear recognition of the debt that John Milton#· the poet owed his father. It is unfortunate that the date of this Latin poem is not known, for in this poem the poet definitely rejects the church as his destined profession. One can well imagine the elder

John Milton's concern when he found that his s:>n, after extensive training

16 Fletcher, I, 48, 28-29.

17 ~., p. 49. ' .18 Ibid." p. 50. ,.·' 28

for the clergy, wanted to abandon this profession for the seemingly un rewarding one 0£ a poet. The information derived from Ad Patrem sub stantiates the elder John Milton1 s character as set forth in the preceding paragraph.

For you would not bid ma go where the broad way lies wide open, where the field of lucre is easier and the golden hope of amassing money is glittering and sure; neither do you force me into law and the evil admin istration of the national statutes. You do not con demn m:y ears to noisy impertinence; But rather, be cause you wish to enrich the mind which you have care fully cultivated, yoti lead me far away from the uproar of cities into these high retreats of delightful ! :·. :. •• leisure •••19 wnat a picture of unselfishness is drawn of the elder John Milton in the preceding passage. As Masson points out, at the time Ad Patrem was written, any controversy over the poet 1s decision was over and settled amicably. 20

Perhaps the most important lines in Ad Patrem are those contained in the.first three sentences of the poem.

Now I wish that the Pierian fountains would send their waters flooding through m,y breast and make my lips the channel for the whole stream that pours from the twin peaks, so that my Muse-- her trivial songs forgotton~might rise on bold wings to do honour to my revered father ••••Yet I do not know ·what gii'ts of mine could more aptly repay yours, for . ; they can not be equalJ.ed by any barren gratitude of futile words.21 11ilton has acknowledged his debt to his father in one of his few genuinely humble passages. The lines reveal the intimate relationship and respect

19 Hughes, p. B4.

20 Masson, I, 334. 21 Hughes, p. 82. ,..,I 29

that the two John Mil.tons had for one another. Masson tells us that

Mil.ton has complimented hie father far beyond the mere word content 0£

the poem. The very style in which Ad Patrem lias written is a tribute to his father's ability "to relish and duly interpret such a piece of Latin as the foregoing· Un Patrem] with its highly poetic Miltonisms, and its

figures and flowers from classic mythology. 11 22

Because of the close relationship which existed between the poet, John Milton, and his father, his eventual decision against entering the

church must have been a difficult one to make and still more difficult for his father to accept. Perhaps the scrivener recalled his own feelings at · the time his father disinherited him for not accepting the Roman Catholic religion. The scrivener's own experience might have created in him a sense of toleration which had been completely lacking in his father, Richard Milton. Certainly there was no complete rupture in the relation

ship between the poet and his father, as evidenced by the poet~s sta:r at

Horton. The poet would not have made his decision to give up a church career without a great deal of soul-searching. Therefore it can be assumed that the conclusions regarding his career, at which John Milton arrived during his period of indecision, were to serve as a basis for his ecclesi astical beliefs throughout his life.

In· conclusion, it should be said that the elder John Milton was in the perfect position to influence greatly the precepts of his son. He was

a successful businessman, having started in London with little or no pros pects. There is little indication that his marriage to Sarah Jeffreys

22 Masson, I, ~37. / .. .30

was anything but a successful one. There can be little doubt that the scrivener was an orthodox Anglican and a leading parishioner in the All Hallows Bread Street Church. In fact, his son, John Yri.lton, the poet, was groomed from infancy to become a clergyman in the Anglican Church. All these factors would definitely win the respect of a son if not his love. There is only one indication that the poet might become something other than an orthodox Anglican. In his family there was a .tradition of nonconformity in ecclesiastical matters. His father was disinherited for his nonconformity to the Roman Catholic Church, and his grandfather was fined heavily for his nonconformity to the State Church. Heredity is a somewhat nebulous term with which to deal, but the poet seems to follow his father's inclination to nonconformity. CHAPI'ER IV THOMAS YOUNG

As in the case of the Milton family, a history of nonconformity and deep religious convictions can be traced in the family of the poet's tutor, Thomas Young. William Young, the father of Milton's tutor, was one or forty-two parish ministers who, on Jul71J.,:J~609 signed a protestation against the establishment of an Episcopal system of church government. This characteristic of nonconforinity was passed on to his son. Strong evidence of this trait is offered by Young's participation in the church government controversy as a member of the Smectymnuans. It is perhaps by a close look at Young's Hope's Encouragement that one can ascertain his influence on Milton. Young shows the same Puritan zeal in this work that characterizes so much of Milton's work. It is surprising that Thomas Young's influence on John Miltonl has been largely neglected by many of our current biographers. Few studies in depth have been made other than Masson, James Bass Mullinger's article in The Dictionary of National Biogranhy, and David Laing's Biographical Notices of Thomas Young. This fact becomes even more amazing when we consider the period between 1618-1620, when Young entered Milton's life. ilohn Milton would have been under the tutorship of Thomas Young from the ti.me he was ten to twelve years of age. These years are certainly crucial, impress- ionable years for a young man, and for this reason Thomas Young is considered in this paper a major influence on John Milton. As the elder John Milton

l In this paper, from this point on, 11 Joh..'"1 Milton" refers to the poet, not.his father. 32

influenced his son toward Anglicanism, Thomas Young influenced him toward Puritanism•. -:,

William Young, the father of Milton 1 s tutor, wa.s settled in Luncarty as early as 1576, serving in the subordinate clerical capacity of a 11 Reader." Wil:liam Young's clerical career rapidly improved, for in February of 1582 or 158.3 he was promoted to the vicarage of Luncarty. In or about 1593, the adjacent parish of Redgarton also fell under his jur- isdiction, and still later the parish of Pitcairne became part of his pastorate. He must have been one of the most affluent Scottish parochial clergymen of that time, for in 1593 his income was ''£. 61 13s. hd. of Scottish money annually, besides 10 yearly bolls of barley, 8 bolls of meal, his manse and glebe, and the kirk-land of Luncarty. 11 2 His religious tenets obviously placed him in the Presbyterian section of the Kirk, for he, along wth forty-one other parish ministers, signed the anti-Episcopal Protestation Offered to the Parliament at Perth on July 1, 1609. The Protestation was occasioned by the "persistent attempts of King James to establish a Scottish Episcopacy. rr3 Thomas Young was born in 1587 or 1588 iil.Luncarty. He attended grammar school in Perth and later attended St. Leonard's College in the University of St. Andrews, where he received the degree of Master of Arts in Jilly, 1606, before the age of twenty.4

2 Masson, I, 69. 3 1214. 4.James Bass Mullinger, "Thomas Young," Dictionary of National Biographx (London, 1949-50), XXI, 1307. 3.3

Fletcher points out that Young was educated in a period of Scottish history when remarkable efforts were being made to improve the

Scottish educational system. As early ~s 1575, the Lords of the Privy Council of Scotland had expressed their concern over the conditions in the Scottish grammar schools. One of the subjects that fell under the scrutiny of the Privy Council was the method by which Latin was being taught. The Council soon made it known that they favored uniformity throughout the entire country in the teaching of Latin graimna.r. Dis cussions were held with the tutors of James VI (George Buchanan and Peter Young) and with the schoolmasters at Stirling, Edinburgh, Durham, Haddington, and St. Andrews. A meeting was arranged to be held at Holyrood for the purpose of compiling a eramma.r text that could be used throughout all the schools in Scotland. Although the conference failed in its prim- ary mission, it succeeded in narrowing the field to four texts. These four texts were similar and closer to the purer Latin of Lily than the previous Paris grammars. When Young attended grammar school in Perth, he was given the benefit of the reformed pattern of instruction, which closely resembled the instruction of Milton at St. Paul's. It was presumably during his year at Perth that Young encoµntered some tutor who awakened in him the love for classical and Biblical literature that he was to pass on to

'· Milton.5 The type of training that Thomas Young received while at St. Andrews might be derived from the library belonging to St. Leonard's College.

St. Leonard 1 s College was primarily what is called today a theological

5 Fletcher, I, 139-140. / 34

seminary; the library for the most part, was theological in nnture. It was. large enough to support the teaching of Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and mathematics in addition to the theology.6 The true reason for Young's coming to London to seek employment after further pursuing his theological studies? is a matter of conjecture. Y.asilOn· -states that

Whether because his father had other sons in the Kirk and there was room for no more of the family, or because he could not help that tendency to En~land for independ ent reasons which had become an instinct among the Scots after their King James had shown them the example, it was in England that he sought employment.8 The exact date of Young's arrival in London is another mystery. Masson says that "he was settled in or near London probably about 1612. 11 9 On the other hand, Fletcher is indefinite and states that "Thomas Young reached London sometime after 1606 ••• to seek some means of livelihood there. 1110 One can assume that Thomas Young was not received with open arms by the London of the early seventeenth century. There were several reasons for this, but the principal one was the ecclesiastical difference between

CalviniSill and Episcopalism. The Scots also encountered prejudice because of their slightly foreign manners and accents and their obvious advantage with the Scottish l'JOnarch. We find in Thomas: .Ga taker 1 s Di scours perhaps

6 Ibid., p. 141. 7 Masson states that Thomas Young might have gone to one of the Protestant Universities of Northern Germany to pursue his theological studies. See Masson, I, 70. 8 Masson, I, 70.

9~. 10 Fletcher, I,.146. / 35

one of the best swmnaries of the anti-Scottish sentiment prevalent at the time of Young's arrival in London. In this passage he is irofuting charges leveled against him by Richard Carpenter in his sermon The Perfect Law of

God. Thus to cur.!7' favor with the Independents, whom he .Z-carpente.!:f would fain close with, he courts them. As for the Presbyterians, he can find no language foul, or broad enough to belch up against them or spew out upon them, whom in both his Rabblements fraught with Ribaldrie he bedawbs and bespatters with these, and other like Satyrical and scurrilous titles. Scotch Pharisees, Scotch Manichees; Scotch Barnacles; Scotch Balaks and Balaams with their speaking Asses; Brethren of the Scotch Mist; Jockey Preachers; Tincking-toned Presbyterians; new-found Pulpit men, black Knights of the blew Bonnet, that would tuck up all powers under a. Geneva girdle; •• • Jewish Cabalists; Kirk Sea-Monsters; Hungrie Dog flies; homespun Jesuits; the Devils Janissaries.ll Gataker, influenced by his father's reformed ideas about church government, was in sympathy with the Scots in their ideas about Presbyterian and non prelatical forms of church organization •. He had expounded and supported anti-prelatical tracts stemming from Scotland.12 Thomas Young seems to have joined the Gataker household in the position of curate shortly after reaching London. Serving in the Gataker's household, Young's acquaintance with Mr. Stocke, the rector at All Hallows Bread Street, does appear unlikely. It is probably in this manner, through Mr,-Stocke, that the elder John Milton met Young and chose him to tutor his son. It was about the year 1618 that Young first began his duties as a tutor to the poet. Fletcher admirably defines their relationship and study9

11 ~., Quoted from Thomas Gataker 1 s Discours Apologeticall.

12~. .36

It was Thomas Youn~, revered by his willing pupil as a father, loved as a friend, and respected as a scholar, who lead young Milton into the pnthn of literature in Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Syriac. Young's own training served as a guide, and his inspired love for literature and learning was transmitted to the boy.13

In 11 .Milton's Schoolmasters," by Arthur Barker, we find a more en-

compassing statement than the one made by Fletcher. 11 The equipment of ,ideas with which Milton launched forth upon his controversial career is, in fact, 1114 essentially that of Young, . . . . As this article is one of the few studies devoted to Young's influence on Milton, its importance can not be

overlooked. Barker's main thesis for his statement above is based on a

comparison of Young's first and chief work, Dies Dominica,15 with some of Milton's early anti-prelatical tracts. In the preface writt-en by Baxter, we find information about Young's

reputation at the time The Lord 1 s i)ay was written. Young is described as

"A man'.:eminent·iin his time for great learning, judgment, piety, Lani/ humility. 11 Baxter continues by commending highly the book "as of great use at a time when in spite of the cormnands of men, true Christians ought to strive to

.observe the day strictly. 11 16

The Lord~s Day is heavily buttressed by theological argu.11ents, but

there are essentially two .main Points which Young is debating. The first

argument is that the Lord 1 s day is properly to be observed iii place of the

13 Ibid., p. 151. 14 Altthur Barker, "Milton's Schoolmasters," :ViodE"rn Language Review ( October, 1937), XXXII, 518. 15 The complete title is Dies Dominica, Sive Succincta Narratio ex s. Scripturarum and Veverandae Antiguitatis Patrum Testimoniis Concinnata •. Dies Dominica was first published pseudonymously in 1639 and appeared in English in 1672 as 'The Lord's Day., •• , Barker, p. 518. 16 Barker, p. 517. 37

Jewish Sabbath· as being the day on which Christ arose from the tomb. The second Point of discussion involves the occupations to which the Sabbath should and should not be devoted. Young describes the misuses of the Lord's day in the following passage. This festival hath been solemnized as was fit, in the excercise of piety according to the rule of God's word, but by few;- which the many fairs upon it for gainful . labour, in all nations, feasts, drunkenness, dancings, and the impious profanations of it by stage-plays do testify.17 . .

To prove his first point, Young uses the scripture, analogy with the law of the Sabbath, and patristic writings. He concludes·his first .. book with a discussion of those activities of "profaneness and carnal delight, 11 including, with those mentioned above, sports of all kinds, pageants, and "immodest interludes. 11 The second book of The Lord's Day is devoted to the excercises on the Sabbath which Young thought were proper: church services, sermons, prayers, singing of psalms and hymns, gathering of alms, and the private searching of the scripture.18 Although 11ilton later rejected Young's thesis on the Lord's day, he echoed Young's opinion in Of Reformation, written in 1641~

••• but this I am sure, they took the ready way to dispoile us both of manhood and grace at once, and that in the shamefullest and ungodliest manner upon that day which God 1 s Law, and even our own reason both consecrated, that we might have one day at least of seven set apart wherein to exa.min and en crease our knowledge of God to meditate, and commune of our Faith, our Hope, our eternall City in Heaven, and to quick'n, withall, the study, and exercise of Charity;

17 ~., p. 519. Quoted from The Lord's Day.

18 Ibid. , 38 /

at such a time that men should. 'bee pluck 1t from their soberest and saddest thoughts, and by Bishops, the pretended Fathers of the Church instigated by publique Eiict, and with earnest ipdeavor push't forward to gaming, jigging, wassailing, and mixt dancing is a horror to think.19

However closely Young•s,.,and~:Mi.lton 1s ideas coincided ·on the Sabbath in 1641, they were in wide divergence when Milton wrote the Christian•_:Doctrine.

Neither can the circumstance of Christ 1 s having appeared twice to his disciples on this day, if indeed the words ~after eight days, 1 John xx. 26. are rightly interpreted the eighth day after, be safely adduced in proof of the divine institution of a new Sabbath; inasmuch as there can be no doubt that he appeared on other days also, Luke xxiv. 36. and John xxi. 3,4. 'Peter saith unto them, I go a-fishing' which was not lawful on the Sabbath; so that the day following, on the morning of which Christ appeared, could not have been the first of the week. Even supposing, however, that it had been so, still the assigning this as a reason for the institution of a new Sabbath· is a matter solely of human inference; since no co~.mand ment on this subject, nor any reason for such insti tutions, is found in all scripture.20 Young's reasoning concerning the Lord's day was not solely based on the meagre authority derivable from the,·recorded observances of the apostles in Acts, but also upon the testimony of 11 the reverend, ancient fathers." He was noted in his own day for his patristic learning. · Baxter speaks of him in his preface as eminent, especially for his acquaintance with the~writings of the ancient teachers of the churches and the doctrines practices of former ages. His familiarity is evident in his first treatise, and we must note the contrast between Young's attempt to defend the Lord's day

19 Of Reformation, C. E., III, 53.

20. Ch~istian Doctrine, C. E., XVII, lS?. j'/ / /

"both with the authority of scripture and likewise with the consent and records of reverend antiquity plainly attested'' ·21 and the attitude of .Vd.lton to "that indigested heap and frie. of Authors. 1122 Young states clearly the authorities on which he depends, and indicates a method of settling controversiil ·p0ints',that: Milton:. soon·.was:.toi'firid-,very!:unsouri

Young's belief in scripture is somewhat more realistic than the belief in its all~sufficiency held by }1ilton. Young felt that the authority of the fathers should be limited to those traditions which have some ground in scripture. Both Milton and Young believed in reason as a guide in settling controversial-.eccJ.,esiastical disputes. Milton 1 s reasoning led him to the

21 Barker, p. 520. Quoted from the "Dedication" to The Lord's Day.

22 Of Prelatical Episcopacy, C. E., III, 82.

23 Bar.ker, p. 520. <..!uoted from the 11 Dedication11 to The Lord's Day.

•' , 40 /

complete dismissal of th.e ancient authorities. Young 1 s reasoning led to an apparent solution of the question of the proper reverence owed these same authorities. Young assumes that reason and the consent of all good men must support each other.

Whatever my blear eyes have observed to be laid up m the deep records of honorable antiquity (which they that love the truth cannot but highly prize) upon this holy.subject, I have brought it out to light, that it may be manifested to all who truely favour of godliness how much honour, not only reason itself, but the consent of all good men and learned do attribute to so solemn a festival.24 ·

It is obvious that ~Iilton owed much of his patristic learning to Young's direction; yet, when he writes a.s an' .. ally of "Smec:tymnuus 'andrJ:argeiy as pupil of Young, his·rejcction of the authority of the Fathers and councils is complete. Milton's rejection of uncertain and unsound tradition, on the grounds that the times, the men, and their writings were corrupt, does not indicate a complete separation from the position of Young and of orthodox Puritanism. They, too, preferred, whenever possible, to depend on what was to them the clear and unequivocal authority of scripture. }1ilton's belief in reasoning, as in the case of ancient authority, led him to a different position on councils from that of Young. In

Animadversions ~1ilton's reply to Hall's argument, based on the decisions of the councils concerning the liturgy, reveals a kind of assertion which is not prominent in the writings of Young: 11 I shall be bold to say that reason is the gift of God in one man, as well:as in a thousand. 1125 Such

24·Ibid. Quoted from The Lord's Day, p. 406. ·

25 Animcl.dversions, C. E., III, 126. ' ....

appeals rarely occur in ·the anti-prelatical tracts, as Yrl.lton is concerned with demonstrating the limitations of human reasoning rather than its per- ogatives. These passages, rare though they may;·be, point to the path along which Milton separates from Young and his like.26 Strange as· it may seem, Milton's tenets on both past councils and the fathers of antiquity might have originated with Young. In spite of his reverence for authority, his orthodoxy, and his impatience with the crooked interpretations of .sectaries and heretics, Young is liberal enough to be sympathetic to the essential. convictions of the Areopav,iticaL liMen of every age, studiously following known truth ••• _are blessed with;a new light of knowledge not observed by their predecessors. 1127 Christian liberty remained for Young, as for Orthodox Puritanism, a theological concept expressive of purely spiritual condition, a privilege which did not

require for its perfection to be "used in the presence of men. n2B On the other hand, in Milton's earlier pamphlets, Christian liberty is already

associated with the rights of the lay bel~evers, with "those many admirable and heavenly privileges reach out to us by the /i,ospeJ]. 1129 Hilton's description.:.of the individual layman's place in church government is taken directly from Smectymnuan assertions. The account in Of Reformation of the

26 Barker, p. 522. 27 Ibid., p. 523. Quoted from The Lord's Dav, p. 15.

;'28 Calvin: Institutes of Christian Religion, ed., John T. _t.1'..cNeiil, (Philadelphia, 1960), p. 135. 29 The Reason of Church Government, C. E., III, 183. people's part in primitive elections is a repetition of both arguments and materials used by Smectynmuus. 3o Another point of similarity is the description or true church censure as excercised by the congregation.31 The chief point of disagreement between Young as a member of the Smectyrnnuus, and Milton, was the manner in which they regarded the first - Cryristian Emperor,.Constantine. This disagreement, perhaps more than ~..ny other, indicated how far apart were Vri.lton and the Smectymnuans in their thinking. Young and other Smectynmuan members described Constantine as "Blessed Constantine," "Pious religious Constantine," "admired Constantine, . that great promoter and patron of the peace of the Christian Church," "the

great and most Godly emperor," who "contended by all means that he coul~ to

promote our religion. 11 32 For Milton, Constantine is the symbol of corruption and worldly anti-Christianism. In,Of Reformation we find Milton's antagonism toward Constantine. They extol Constantine because he extoled them. • • • If he had curbed the growing pride, avarice, and lux ury of the clergy, then every page of his story should have swelled with his faults.33

In the preceding passage, Milton shows signs of not only being anti-Episcopal.,

but anti-clerical as well. The disgust with an inefficient clergiJ expressed. • • in ~Lycidas~ 1 associated now with the dignity of the lai~y; 'the people of God, redeemed and washed ~'ith

30 See An Answer, pp. 33-34., Of H.eforrnation, C. E., III, 12-15. 31 See An Answer, p. 41., and The Reason of Church Government, C. E., III, 71-72. 32 See An Answer, pp. 2$, 35., and The Lord's Dav, preface, p. 5B.

33 Of Reformation, C. E., III, 23. f , h3 ,.

Christ's blood,34 and in their ovm right prophets, priests, and Kings, 1 is to grow through a hatred of Episcopacy and then of Presbytry to a reaction against the whole order, to the attack UPon the clergy in the tract on hirelings and to the pro nouncment of The Christian Doctrine35 that even the Sacraments are not the monopoly of an ordained ministry.36

In spite of the differences of opinion held by the poet and hi~ tutor, Milton must have read with appreciation the sermon which Young delivered before the House of Commons at their fast on February 28, 1644. This sermon was published immediately by command of the House of Cornmons under the title of Hope's Encouragement. Regularly once a month, the clergy was allowed to preach to the House of Commons. Hope's Encoura~ement was a hortatory appeal to further the work of 'reformation. In this sermon we find a conviction of divine supPort and direction very like l"1ilton's own and, further, something of the sense of inescapable destiny which moved the poet to enter the church government controversy. Young is char- acterized in Hope's Encouragement when he says

• • • (W)hen God calls a man to any :work, he must not forbear or keep off from doing that which God calls him to, upon fear of what may ensue; but rouse up his spirit and strive to fulfil his work. Therein will appear his courage, in breaking through all dif ficulties whatsoever, to honour God in obedience to his command.37 .

.Although we can not be certain of the principles which Milton was then

34 ~., P• 18-19. 35 Christian Doctrine, G. E., X:VI, 205-209. 36 Barker, p. 525. . l 37 ~., P• 526., Quoted from Hone's Encouragement, p. 13. 44

evolving, the spirit and rhetoric of Hope's Encouragement is si.rnilar to his own impassioned appeals to parliament. The work you are called to is work of great concern ment; it is the purging of the church and common wealth. A work sure enough to be encountered with great opposition; yet, I must say, it is a work with the managing whereof God hath not so honoured others which have gone before you in your places, but hath reserved it to make you the instruments of his glory in advancing. it: and that doth much add into your honour. Was it an honour to the Tyrians tqat they were counted a.inongst the builders of the t emµle, when Hiram sent to Solomon things necessary for that work? How then hath God honoured you, reserving to you the care of re-edifying of his church (the house of the living God) and the:·r.~pairing of the shattered com monwealth (so far borne down before he raised you up to support it) that succeeding ages may with honour to your names say, 'this was the Reforming Parliament?' 38 Barker surrunarizes the tone of the preceding Pel:ssage: "The '8.uthenic voice of Puritan zeal speaks here, and it is a voice which speaks no less clearly in Milton's pages. 11 ~9

Wit,hout Barker's study we still would have evidence of the esteem and regard that Milton had for his childhood tutor. This evidence is found in two letters written to Young by Milton and Elegy IV, addressed to Young. The first.letter that has been preserved was written on March 26, 1625, the purpose being to thank Young for the gift of a Hebnew Bible. The letter is expressive of Milton 1 s gratitude 'to his tutor •. • • • for the boundless and sing:Ular gratitude of mind which your desert~_justly claim from me was not to be expressed in that Lmetrical numbery1:c-ramped mode of .

38 Ibid. · 39 Barker, P• 526 •. /~ 1 45

speech.,, ..... -~ • Albeit, in trutl:r, to express suffi ciently how much I owe you were a work fa.r greater than my strength, even if I should ransack all those hoards of arguments which Aristotle or which that Diaclectician of Paris has amassed, or even if I should exhaust.all the fountains of oratory.40

~lilton, after stating that he is honored that Young should complain of not hearing from him, continues to show his reverence for Young.

For I call God to witness how much in the light of a Father I regard you, with what singlular devotion I have always followed you in thought, and how I feared to tr.ouble you with my writings ••••Next, as that most vehement desire after you which I feel makes me always fancy you with ma, and speak to you and behold you as if you were present, and so (as generally happens in love) soothe my grief by a cer tain vain imagination of your presence, it is in truth my fear that, as soon as I should meditate a letter to be sent you, it should suddenly come into my mind by what an interval of earth you are distant from me, and so the grief of your absence, already nearly killed, should grow fresh, and break up my sweet dream.41 The next letter addressed to Young was written on July 21, 1628.

Upon reading this letter, we find that Milton's attitude toward Young has remained unchanged.

That I should suspect that you had forgotten me, however, yotir so many recent kindnesses to me by no means allow. I do not see, either, how you could dis miss i:rlto oblivion one laden with so great benefits by you.42

Milton gives to Young what might be the supreme compliment in his fourth elegy addressed to Young. It is in this elegy that Young is portrayed

40 The Familiar Letters of John Milton, Englishman, C. E., XII, 5.

41 Tu,;ill., p. 7. 42 Ibid., p. 15. - .. 46

as a priest that lives up to Milton's stringent standard. Once again

Milton expresses his appreciation to his tutor for the education which Young has brought to him.

There dwells a priest renowned, honoured from the days of old for piety, well trained to feed the sheep that follow Christ, He verily, is more than the half of my life· I live, perchance, with but half a life •••• He /!i.ouni] led the way for me, when first I traversed Aonia's retreats and the holy greensward of the twice clen, ridge, when I drank Pieria's waters, and, favor ed by Cleo,- I thr.ice sprinkled my happy lips with Castolia 1 s wine.43

The real reason for Milton's composition of the Fourth Elegy is shown in ~- the passage below.

For a long, long time his ffdltoll7~; impulse has been to salute you, and Love has suffered hinl not to prolong delays, for wide-ranging Rumour tells a story••• that in places which are your neighbors wars are swell ing, that you and your city are girt with grim soldiery, and that the Saxon captains have now made ready their arms.44 In one of the clearest passages reflecting this respect and reverence which Milton held for Young, the poet states, But take you heart and courage: let not your hopes per ish, crushed by anxieties, and let not fear robbing you of your color, shatter your fame. For, though you are overwhellned by flashing arms, and though a thousand mis siles threaten you with a violent death, yet no weapon will outrage your side, undefended by armour though it be, and no spear point will drink your blood. For you your- self will be kept safe under the flashing aegis of God; ••• 45

43 "Elegy the Fourth, 11 O. E., I, 187. 44 Ibid., p. 191.

45 Ibid., p. 193. 47

.. -"

SUM:lv.;ARY OF YOUNG'S INFLUENCE ON MILTON

Young's importance as an influence during Milton's childhood can hardly be over emphasized. It is only through a close scrutiny of Young's earlier life and writings that the validity of t~is statement becomes apparent. The significant points of interest and their probable influence on Milton are listed below. ·•

1.) Young's father was a dedicated Presbyterian minister who, as in the case of Milton's father, was not. afraid.to speak out for his religion. This dedication was passed on to his son· Thomas, who becrune thoroughly in doctrinated in the Puritan faith. Thus Milton was brought into contact with Puritanism by a man whom he respected and revered. In.many ways this reli gious belief was incompe1:tible with the belief of his father, who was a.n

Anglican. 2.) Young's schooling is important because he had the advantage of attending the grammar school at Perth after rer..arkable efforts had been made to improve Scottish ~ducation. It was while encountering this reformed pattern of instruction that Young was imbued with his remarkable love for classical and Biblical literature. Young passed this love on to Milton.

3.) The fact that Young chose to settle in London rather than to return to ·Scotland is significant. This 'indicates that he was not afraid of being a nonconformist as far as his religion was concerned. London was definitely an Anglican stronghold, and one has only to read Gataker's Discours to discover the reception he probably encountered there. Although this par ticular influence on Milton is not as evident as in points one and two, one must. conclude, in light of l1i.l ton 1 s own nonconformity as revealed in the Christian Doctrine, that Young influenced him in this direction. 4S

4.) Conclusive proof of Young's influence on Milton is found in Arthur Barker's "Milton's Schoolmasters," in which Barker draws many close parallels in religious beliefs between Young's Dies Dominica and Milton's earlier anti-prelatical tracts.

Just prior to Milton1 s entrance into St. Paul's School, the poet had encountered two major influences. The fir~t was his father and his f arnily background. This influence would have guided him alone the paths of orthodoxy and an eventual. position in the Anglican church. The second major influence, however, was Thomas Young, who undoubtedly swayed him to a cer tain extent 'f!Way from the paths of orthodoxy. One can well imagine Milton comparing the religion of his father with that of his tutor. It might have been at this point that the poet began to form the planks of his religi9us platform which were to be expressed so ably in his Christian Doctrine.

Perhaps even then he was selecting from both religious views that which he believed to be essentially correct and was discarding that which he did not believe. There lay ahead of him a third major influence, which, in the person of Dr. Alexander Gill, Sr., was to hasten the solidification of his religious beliefs. Once again Milton was brouWit face to face with nonconformity.

Dr. Gill presented the unusual picture of an Anglican minister who preached that b~sic Christian beliefs could be reached by man's reason as well:as by revelation. This position was held in abhorrence by most of the more con servative members of the Anglican clergy. Milton adopted Gill's method of applying reason to religious beliefs as his own, not to prove the truth of revelation as did Gill, but to establish his own faith. By the ~pplication 49 /

of the test of reason to the tenets of various sects and oenominations and by reference to the Bible, Milton was able to reach arreligious position which, in his mind, combined the truth of each denomination. Absorbing their influence, Milton, from the time he left St. Paul's School, built his religious convictions upon reason and the scriptures •. CHAPTER V

ST. ?AUL 1S SCHOOL

The next milestone.in Hilton's education was reached at St. Paul•s School. The only documentary evidence of this fact is found in the admis- · sion records of Christ's College; Cambridge. However, Edward Phillips, Aubrey, and Wood each specifically name the sch.ool as St. Paul' s.1 The date of admittance of Milton to St. Paul's is a subject of controversy and lies outside the scope of this study. The majority of scholars seem to place 2 Milton at St. Paul 1 s from 1617 to 1625. The choice of St. Paul's as the school was probably influenced by its proximity to Bread Street.

The school had been founded in 1512 by Dr. John Colet, Dean of

St. Paul's, who was one of the richest men in London. Colet's purpose in founding the school was to create free education for poor men's children in all sound Christian and grammatical learning. The number of students was to be kept to one hundred and fifty-three, this number being derived from the number of fish which Simon Peter drew to land in the draught.3 Because of Colet's great wealth, he was able to build and furnish the school, and more important, he was to endow it with lands sufficient to provide salaries perpetually for a head-master, a sur-master or usher, and a chaplain. Colet and WilliaI:J. Lily, who was appointed the first head-master, worked zealously in bringing the school to perfection. Colet prepared an English Catechism and, with the help of his friend. Erasmus, compiled two short introductions

l See Darbishire, p. 53., Aubrey, p. 2., and Wood, p. 35. 2 See Fletcher, I, 163., and Hughes, xiii. Masson states only that Milton entered St. Paul's no later than 1620. Masson, I, 74.

3 See the Gospel of John, Chapter xxi, verse 11. /

,, _,

to the study of Latin. Lily's ov.n Latin Grammar, which was published in

1513 specifically for the students of St. Paul's, became tho foun~ntion o! all Latin grammars used in Englanct.4 Before his death in 1519, Colet had wisely chosen to leave the management of S~. Paul's in the hands of the Mercers Company of London ., rather than to his successors in the Deanery o~ St. Paul's. The Mercers were to have the complete management of the school, with power to change the arrangements from time to time. \-Jhen a vacancy in the headmastership occurred, the Master, Warders,' and Assistants were to choose his successor.

Qualifications for this post were "a man whole in body, honest, vi~tuous,

and learned in good .and clean Latin literature, an~ also in Greek, if such might be gotten, a wedded man, a single man, or a priest without benefice. 11 5 Donald Lemen Clark in the first chapter of his book John Milton at St. Paul's School, points out the similarity of curriculum between "the orators and poets of antiquity" and the curriculum which Milton pursued at St. Paul's. Great emphasis was placed on the linguistic arts of grammar, rhetoric, and logic while the mathematical arts of arithmetic,, .geometry, music, and astronomy were honored more than taught. Clark is very definite in his opinion as to what part the humanistic training at St. Paul 1 s played in formulating Milton's genius. It was at St. Paul's School that he gained that coJTu-na.nd of Latin which he put to such noble use in the service of his countrY" in his great defenses of English Liberty. Here it was that he first learned_ to practice,·rhetorics

l;. Ea.sson, I, 74-75. which, when he came a man, enabled him to control his thoughts for effective communication to the world.6 Whether or not Cambridge University should share in the honor that Clark seems to give exclusively to St. Paul's is not a point of consideration in this paper. A closer look at the curriculum, however, will be instructive. The typical curriclllum of an eight-form grammar school was divided into the

"Lower School11 and the "Upper School." In the "Lower School" concentration was placed on Latin grammar, easier Latin authors, Latin conversation, and the writings of simple themes and exercises in Latin. The "Upper School" students concentrated on Greek grammar, the reading of Latin poetry and oratory, and, in the highest class, a smattering of Hebrew. Generally, grammar was learned in the morning and authors read in the afternoon from Monday through Thursday. Friday was utilized to review what had been learned during that week.7 From this general curriculum used in the grammar schools of Milton's childhood years Clark has composed a conjectured curriculum, which is described in Appendix A.of this paper. Upon reading Clark's conjectured curriculum of St. Paul's School from 1618-1625 in Appendix A of this paper, it is well to remember that we have no knowledge as to :the date or to what form Milton was admitted to St. Paul's School. With.this thought in mind Fletcher makes the statement that Much that D. L. Clark and others have written of life at St. Paul's School in Milton's day is probably not very pertinent, for, as seems likely, }tilton only attended the upper forms.8

6 Donald Lemen Clark, John Milton at St. Paul 1 s School (New York, 1948), P• 4.

7 ~., pp. 109-110.

8 Fletche~, I,·162. It is sufficient to say that Milton received at St. Paul's School a humanistic education-which was no better or worse than that obtainable at other schools influenced by the English Renaissance.

RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCES AT ST. PAUL'S SCHOOL

Dr. John Colet, the founder of St. Paul's School, was farsighte.d enough to leave the management of St. Paul's in the hand of the Mercers

Company. He was, however, a religious official in the Anglican Church and, as might be expected, demanded certain religious observances of the children. They were to hear the Boy Bishops sermon on Childermas Day in the cathedral; they should march in general pro cessions, soberly, and say seven psalms and the litany; and three times a day they wer~ to prostrate themselves and say their prayers.9 Fortunately for Hilton, in 1602 the Mercers in Amending

Ordinances cancelled these requirements, for they had the appearance of

Popery. Wee doe further ordeyne, that noe other prayers or cere monies shalbe used in the schole, but suche only as the lawes and statutes of this realme of Englande for the tyme beinge doe or shall permitt and allowe.10

Milton did participate daily in religious ceremonies and prayers permitted by the laws of England, TWo prayers to the boy Jesus, which were used in Milton's time, are still used in St. Paul's School. One of these prayers was attributed to Colet himself, while the other was written by

Erasmus and put into the mouth of Gaspar, the schoolboy.11 Both the

9 Clark, P• 44. 10 Ibid., quoted from Gardiner, Admission Registers, p. 390.

11 For Clark's translation see Appendix B. ,.. 54

Amending Ordinances mentioned above and the Canons promulgated by the Convocation in 1604, ·tended to codify existing customs. Thus we can safely assume that the following passage was in effect at the time Milton entered St. Paul's School. I All schoolmasters shall thoroughly instruct their children in the catechism either in the longer ver- sion or in the shorter catechism heretofore published by public authority in Latin, or in Enr,lish suit able to children's capacity. And so often as a ser mon is to be preached upon a holy day or festivaJ. within the parish wherein they teach, they shall con-:i·:f. duct their pupils to the church wherein the said ser mon is to be delivered, they shall take care that they remain there quietly and humbly, and,, at some fitting time after their return from church, they shall call up the pupils, one by one, to examine them as to what they have learned from the said sermon. But upon other days, they shall instruct and educate them by meMs of texts drmm from Holy Scripture, such as seem fitting and especially useful for imbuing their minds with piety.12

ALEXANDER. GILL, SR.

By .far the most important influence on Milton while he attended

St. Paul's School was his association with Dr. Alexander Gill, Sr. Dr.

Gill was born February 27, 1564, received his A.B. from Corpus Christi

College, 0-..ct'ord, in 1586 and his A.H .. in 1589. In 1608, 'according to Wood

He became the chief master of St. Paul's School with in the city of London, in the place of Rich Mulcaster, was esteemed by most persons to be a learned man, a noted Latinist, critic, and divine, and also to have such an excellent way of training up youth, that none ..:J • • , ·:.L: in his time went beyond him. Whence 'twas, that many noted persons in church did esteem it the greatest of their happiness, that they had been educated under him.13

12 Clark, p. 47. Quoted from ConsLitutiones sive Canones Ecclesiastici, 1603-1604, No. 79. See J. W. Adamson, Short History of Education, (Cambridge, 1922), p. 188. 13 Anthony a. Wood, Athenae Oxonienses (London, 1691-1692),II, 598. 55

Although ¥.d.lton never mentions the elder Gill by name, perhaps it can be assu.~ed that his very silence is an indication of his happiness. Ten years after Milton left St. Paul's School, the elder Gill died on November 17, 1635, in his house in St. Paul's churchyard, part of the original building of St. Paul's School built by Dr. Colet in 1512.

Further information about Dr. Gill's qualifications can be ascer-' tained from the standards set by Constitutions anct Canons Ecclesiastical issued by the Church of England in 1604. No man shall teach either in publicke Schoole, or pri uate house, but such as shall bee allowed by the Bishop of the Diocesse, or Ordinary of the place under his Hand and Seale, being found meete as well for his learn ing & dexteritie in teaching, as for sober and honest conuersation, and also for right understanding of God's true Religion, and also except he shal first subscribe to the first and third Articles aforementioned simply, and to the first clauses of the second Article. 78. Curates desirous to teach, to bee licenced before others.

In what Parish Church or Chappell soeuer there is a Curate_ which is a Master of Arts, or Bachelor of Arts, or is otherwise wel able to teach youth, and will will ingly so doe, for the better increase of his liuing, and trayning up of children in Principles of true Reli gion: We will and ordaine, That a Licence to teach youth of the Parish where he serueth, be granted to none by the Ordinarie of that place, but only to the said Curate. • • • And if any Schoolemaster being licenced, and hauing subscribed, as aforesaid, shall offend in any of the premisses, Or either speake, write, or teach against anything whereunto he hath formerly subscribed, (if upon admonition by the Ordinary he doe not amend and reforme himselfe) let him be suspended from teach ing Schoole any longer.14

14 Fletcher, I, 169 •. Quoted from Constitutiones sive Canones Ecclesiastici, 1603-1604, No. 77, 78. / 56

There is every reason to.believe that Gill was more than qualified to pass the standards set by the Church of England. His appointment to the position

0£ headmaster at St, Paul's School in 1608 is strong evidence of consider able experience and some reputation in the teaching field.15

As in the case of Tho:nas Young, it is necessary to review the , writings of Gill to understand fully his influence on Milton. These writ ings indicate that Gill's influence on Nilton was not only a. literary one but a philosophical one as well. These two areas of influence are pre sented by Gill's two chief works: Logonomia Anglica qua gentis sermo faciluus addiscitur and Sacred Philosophy of the Holy Scripture, Laid down as conclusions upon the Articles of our Faith, commonly called the Anostles

Creed, proved by the principles and rules taught and received in the light of understanding.

LOGONOH.IA ANGLICA

If Young introduced Milton to the delights of the classical language, it was Gill who directed him to those of the English language. Logonomia

Anglica is dedicated to King James in an "Epistola DedicC).tonia" which praises the English language even more than it does King James. In.the

11 Dedicatonia11 the King is reminded of the care which princes have ever had for the languages 0:5 their countries. The preface shows that Gill was an enthusiastic supporter of all things Anglo-Saxon and that this enthusiasm created a prejudice in him against foreign elements in the English vocabulary,

15 Fletcher, I, 171-172. 57

especially Latin and French. Gill's prejudice was so strong that he con demned Geoffrey Chaucer for having used so many French and Latin words.16

The definition that Gill supplies of thv word:. "logonomia" is

11 the comprehension of' the rulea by which an unknown language can be learned more easily. 11 Logonomia Anglica is divided into four parts: 11 Grarr.rna.tica, 11

11 11 Etymologia, II 11 Syntaxis, II and Prosodia;" 11 Synta.xis11 being expanded to' include the tropes and the figures of speech and of thought usually taught in the school rhetoric for English. Milton must have been very interested in chapters XIX-XXVIII of the Logonomia, for they contained a discussion of prosody and the adaptability of classical metres to English poetryo17 Gill's attitude toward the English language as expressed in Logonomia might have been the original source of ~tilton's decision onposing Latin in favor of English. Certainly the headmaster of St. PaU1 1 s would have approved of Milton's statement in At a Vacation Exercise. Hail native Language; that by sinews weak Didst move my first endeavoring tongue to speak.18

It is to Gill that Fletcher gives the credit for having taught Milton

11 much of versification in many languages from the high master of St. Paul's. 1119

SACRED PHILOSOPHY OF THE HOLY SCRIPI'URES

Logonomia Anglica was not Gill's most important work. To comprehend his deepest convictions, one must read Gill 1 s Sacred Philosophy of the Holy

Scriptures, the first edition appearing in 1635. It is in this work that

16 Barker, P• 527., and Clark, p. 71. 17 Clark, pp. 72-73., Barker, p. 527. I 18 At a Vacation Excercise in the Colledge, C. E., I, 19.

19 Fletcher, I, 175. / 58 .·

the headmaster's personality and religious thinking are revealed. Gill

remarks that he "had long:-..thought on this work." It appears to have taken shape in his mind as a result of the Short Treatise Concerning the Trinity. This treatise was written at Norwich in 1597 in an attempt to persuade Thomas Mannering, an anabaptist, to the orthodox position of the Trinity.

Gill 1 s wording in the following passage is important, for it ·shows his~ 20 belief in ¥i.annering's reason as sufficient to arrive at the orthodox view of the Trinity. "That by himself; if God would, he might consider

and be persuaded. 1121 Gill had gathered notes and argwnents since writing the Trinity

treatise but refrained from composing his book. "For my profession's sake, I was compelled to poets and their fables, and among children, to speak to

their understanding." The second reason he gave for failing to write his book was his advancing years. The most important reason was that he "hoped

someone better fitted would engage in the task. 1122 In the preface, Gill's

20 Italics are mine.

21 Alexander Gill, Sr., Short Treatise Concerning the Trinity (London, . 1635), II, 212. All references for the Short Treatise Concerning the Trinity ·will be taken from the second edition, (London, 1635), which appeared with Sacred Philosonhy of the Holy Scriptures in one text. As the preface to the Sacred· Philosophy,is. unnu..rnbered, I have numbered it· for ease of reference. The main body of the Sacred Philosonhy is divided into Articles. Articles I and II consist of page numbers 1-196. At the beginning of Articles III en~ titled "which was conceived by, 11 the printer begins again with page 1. For purposes of this paper, 11 I 11 and a page n\lmber will indicate a passage con }.ained in Articles I and II. A 11 II" and a page number will indicate a passage in Article III or some later Article. The Short Treatise follows numerically after the second set of numbers from pages 211-232, and therefore the identifi cation will be 11 1111 followed by a page number.

22 Alexander Gill, Sr., The Sacred Philosophy of the Holy Scriptures, II, 207. / 59

personality is revealed. He apologizes for appearing aged and unheraJ.ded :in

the war against atheism in spite of his difficiencies; for

though I have stood all day in the market because no man hath hired me, yet seeing I would fain have the peny as he that hath borne the burden and heat of the day, I would not be idle

·and ·~

although it be not lawful for me to handle either sword or spear, yet, because I wish well to these holy wars, I have as a straggler brought my basket of stones, whence the slingers, our Davids, if they please may choose what they like, if any uncirc~ cised Philistine shall defy the host of Israel. 3 The true significance of the Sacred Philosophz is the defense of Gill's method of asserting the truth of Christian beliefs. Gill is not concerned with the quarrels among Christians but with showing that "the doctrines common to orthodox believers have not merely the support of reason, but are the logical consequences of reasoning on the state of things. 1124 The purpose of the work appears to be to convince those atheists, Jews, and

Turks who do not admit the force of divine revelation and nthe novice in Christianity, who therefore doubts of the trueness of his religion because

he finds no familiar reason to persuade, but only the rack of authorities

to constrain him to acknowledge it. 11 25 It should be noted that Gill did not feel that reason could really be substituted for scripture and revelation. In his own case Gill arrived· at his conviction of the truth of Christian doctrines by faith and then

proceeded to show them necessarily true even to reason.

23 Gill,~preface; pp. 10-12. 24 Barker, p •. 528.

25 Gill, The Trinity, II; 211-212. , 60 /

I ex.amine not these things of faith, whether they bee true or no, as the Beveans did; but knowing, acknowledging, and to death holding them true, I brought all the strength of my understanding to approve them so.26

The purpose of the treatise then is to reverse Gill 1 s own porsc;>nal e.xp erience in the obtaining of his faith and to convince those who don't accept ·;tJ:ie scriptures through force of reason. My purpose is to add an overplus of proof to the persuasion which the Christian hath, and to justify his faith against all adversaries, not by the auth ority of scripture only, which with heretics, turks and infidels is of small regard.27 Barker summarizes the importance ?f Gill's Sacred Philosophy of the Holy

Scriptures in the passage below.

The importance of Gill's book is that, as a conse quence of his purpose, he thus elects for the moment to set aside even the scriptures, which are the foun dations of faith, and to rest his case upon reason and nature, fully confident that, with the support of scripture and authority, the fundamental Christian beliefs must be found true because reasonable.28 In the .preface of the Sacred Philosophy, Gill mentions the··writers which he claims to have taken as models. This group is significant, for among them we find the great Christian apologists and the pioneers in natural religion. He refers to them in order and indicates the manner in which he finds each unsatisfactory. A. Aquinas - His deficiency is his raising an endless number of questions.

26 Gill, preface, p. 10. 27 Ibid., p.: 1.3. 28 Barker, p. 529. / 61 _,

B. Raimund de Sabunde - He is 11 easy and quick," but lacks the method Gill desires. C. Savonarola - He, like aJ.l Schoo)Jll.en, omits !Ifuch that is necessary and includes much that is not.

D. Philippe de Morney ~ He depends upon the scripture in a manner unsuitable to Gill's purpose. E. Ramon Lull (Raymond Lulli) - His method "gives more full satis faction," but he "proposeth his reasons with great confusion. 11 29 This group of writers suggests Gill's preferences and explains to a certain extent his spirited defense of reason. This list further suggests the

"atmosphere in which Milton's education was conducted. 11 30 When Gill published his treatise on the Trinity, there were some who condemned it for employing reason as a method of persuading in matters of faith. It was partly due to this condemnation that a lengthy justification of rationalism is found in the Sacred Philosophy. To GiJJ., however, reason is "the main advantage which we have" since unbelievers question Christian authorities. 3l ..

Gill's method of dealing with unbelievers is expressed· in a sentence strikingly similar to a remark that Chillingworth made about himself. Gill states, '!Let us not endeavour to lead them like sheep that follow their shepherd, but drive them like asses with the cudgel of reason. 11 32 Chillingworth

29 The list of Gill's models for his Sacred Philosophy is found in his preface, pp. 13-14. Barker repeats them in 111-Iilton's Schoolmaster's~" pp. 529-.30. 30 Barker, p. 5.30. 31 Gill, preface, p. 2.

32 ~., II, 68. .. _,

states that he will not take anything on trust and is unable. 11 to command

myself ••• but most apt and most willing to be lead by reason. 11 33 Gill was unaware that a Protestant alliance between reason and the freeing of the intellect would become a definite threat to Christianity. This threat was to materialize in the form of popular deism, a form of reli gion which Gill was bound to abhor. Gill assumes that creation is organ- ized on divinely rational principles, that divine revelation necessarily expresses those principles, and that "common reason rightly guided" is the

"image of God in us yet remainirig, as is.plain. 11 34 He did not foresee the possibility of a conflict between revelation and the conclusions nrawn from nature. For those more farsighted than Gill, who saw the danger and denied the validity of reason in religion, Gill answered that it is impossible that "that special and principle gift of God to mankind should not be servicible in drawing man nearer his Creator," for "man alone of all the visible creatures is framed and formed of God into this search, by the outward sense

and reason to find the wisdom and power ·or God in the Creation. 11 35

33 William Chillingworth, The Religion of Protestants. A Sa.fe Way to Salvation (Oxford, 1638), preface, p. 2.

34 Alexander Gill, Sr., preface, p. 2. This statement is similar to Milton's belief as expressed in the Christian Doctrine: "• •• the existence of God is further proved by that .feeling, whether we term it conscience, or right reason, which even in the worst of characters is not altogether extinquished. If there were no God, there would be no distinction between right and wrong: the estimate of virtue and vice would depend on the blind opinion of men; none would follow virtue, none would be restrained from vice by any sense of shame, or fear of the laws, unless conscience or right reason did from time to time convince everyone, however unwilling, of the existence of God •• •" Christian Doctrine, C. E.~ XJ.V, 29. 35 Ibid., preface, p. 3. / 6.3

Like Milton in Comus and Paradise Lost, Gill elsewhere in· the treatise indicates man's place in that "scale of nature," which culminates, so far as creatures are concerned, in the Angels36 who In more excellent manner, though with their differ ences and degrees of understanding, without either :-,:·" ''.'' sense or imagination, by the only light of beholding of things, know the truth of their being, prop erties, and possibilities; or else, in a super excellent manner, beholding the Creator, know by him his admirable workmanship.37 · Gill, as a forerunner of the deistic philosophy of the next century, would thus equate Christianity with "natural religion." Barker states that this "natural religion" inevitably resulted from the necessity of finding a place within the Christian scheme for those millions of pagans, the fact of whose existence was forced upon the consciousness of the Renaissance by the woy-· . ages of discovery, and whose reprobation to eternal :;•.:; ~ hell-fire had in some way to be1"1ccounted for in or der to preserve Christianity's exclusive right to the possession of the truth.38

By developing the argument that reason is a sufficient substitute for revelation, though not as definite or as conclusive, Gill explains both how "the whole world of infidels and misbelievers bee liable to the justice of God for their ignorance of him, for their neglect, and for their unbelief''~9·_::,i and how the patriarchs achieved salvation before the promise of scripture was revealed. Accepting rightly guided reason as a substitute for revelation, Gill continues,

36 Barker, p. 531. 37 Gill, preface, pp. 12, 16. 38 Barker, p. 531. 39 Gill, preface, p. 7. . 64

The same glorious faith which we are taUf)lt in the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament. • o must be that very same faith by which all the Saints of Go<1 M~l'P. ci::< v-t?,\ .t\H• nbove two hlllldred and fifty y@ars before thero were any scriptures writte~,40,. and that they who either received it not by tradition, as most of the Gentiles, or llllderstood it not in the Law, as few among the Jews did besides the prophets, must of necessity through the light of reason alone hold with us some main and flllldamentaJ. points, accord ing to which, if .they lived in obedience, they might find mercy.41 There is a striking similarity between the main point to which Gill

arrives "by the light of reason" and those 11 lll1shakable foundations of truth

supported by universal consent," found in Eaward Lord Herbert of Cqerbury's De Veritate.42 The Christian rationalist and the student of compara tive religion are actually basing their conclusions upon these principles, for Gill's 'right reason' and Herbert's 'universal consent' amount in this respect to the same thing.43

There are differences in the two lists of fundamentals, one list written by Gill, a conservative Christian, and tho other by Herbert, a pure rationalist. Herbert's five conunon religious notions are: "That there· is a God, that he is to be worshipped, that virtue and piety are tha··chief part of worship, that we should repent our sins, and there is reward or punish- ment after this life. 11 44 Herbert maintains that these beliefs have

40 ~., preface, p. 4.

41 .!!:&Q.. J p. 5.

42 Eaward Lord Herbert Cherbury, De Veritate (Bristol, 1645), p. 49. 43 Barker, p. 532.

44 Lord Herbert of Cherbur;y's De Religioile Laia; edited and translated. with a critical discussion of his life and philosophy by Harold R. Hutcheson, ·(New Haven,. 1944), P• 30. / ,' 65

.. ,.1

remained among all men at all times regardless of race or religion, however they may have been obscured by distortions and accretions. All of Herbert's religious points are included, if not specifically, at least by implication, in Gill's fundamental points. He adds to them an essentially

Christian idea. His fundamentals are: 11 That there is a God, infinite in goodness," "that this God is the maker of all things, 11 "that man is ·:imniortal," "that. salvation must come through a divine meditation, since man himself is obviously in a state of depravity which makes him incapable of saving himself. u45

It is Gill's stated purpose in the Sacred Philosophy to prove \ through discursive reasoning those points mention~d above. His one great

I limitation, however, is .that he can never achieve the complete detachment of Herbert. Because of his orthodoxy, he can not allow reason to contra- diet the conclusions already established as orthodox on other grounds. Reason must be brought in line with authority, with scripture the final standard. Scripture, as Gill is orthodox, must be interpreted according to the Apostle's Creed and the judgment of the Church. His position therefore is very close to that of Chillingworth. Barker compares. Gill's position to Milton's in the following manner • • • • for, if one deducts from Gill's position the element of orthodoxy, one has virtually that which Milton was finally to assume. Both insist upon the necessity of reason in things religious and both in sist upon the·~authority.,·of::the: scripture·;: they differ only - but significantly - in that Milton denies the right of any other authority to pass judgment upo~ the validity of reason's interpretation of scripture.46

45 Gill, preface, pp. 5-6. 46 Barker, p. 532. ···'

In view of his inability to employ reason to its fullest ex.tent, Gill is constantly diverted from his attack on atheism to skirmishes with heretics, his lmowledge of them being somewhat amazing. This knowledge prompted Bishop Smal.ridge to remark, "The best use I have made of /JI-ilY is to know the heretics who have opposed it Lt°he Creeg? and their opinions.

Perhaps others have done it bette!-', but I have not heard of thern. 1147 '• Perhaps Milton made a similar use of his rnaster, for it is interesting to discover in Gill many of the heresies wpich ultimately found a place in Milton's thought.48 When Gill's reason led him to a position opposing the beliefs of \ . Christians, he would immediately turn to the scriptures: For God is not the 9-od of nature only, but much more ·the God of grace and mercy; and to the knowledge of these principles and the conclusions gathered thereon, we are led by better guides than Aristotle ever knew, that is the Holy Scriptures and the Spirit of Grace, who leads us to the right meaning.thereor.49 For Gill, "right reason" occurs only when it is directed by the

Spirit and functions according to 11 the infallible rules of God's word. 11 Realizing that even the above qualification does not prevent disagreement and error, he ass_erts that 11 nothing is to .be taken for truth11 which dis honors God, is contrary to any article of the faith, the commandments, the Lord's prayer, "or any revealed doctrine which is _Plainly taught" in scri:p- ture, against "coIIDllon reason and understanding, or rep~ant to ciVil. custom

47 Wood, II, 598. 48 Barker, p. 533. Milton's idea on the Trinity and the ·immortality of the soul may trace their origin to Gill's Sacred Philosophy.

49 Gill, I, 62 •.. · I / .... '

and good ma.nners.1150 Like all Protestant rationalists, Gill maintains that "though some things be hard, yet the ftmdamental points of our religion,· as the articles of our faith and rules of Christian life are plain and easy to be understood. 11 Those passages which are harder to understand "ought not to be taken for the true meaning. • • which everyone according to his· ' . ., private fancy is able to wring out. 11 The scriptures are "certainly for everyone's interpretation, privately to his own understanding, according to the measure of his capacity. 11 51 Gill thus indicates the liberalizing tendency of rationalism, which was carried to a further extreme by Milton, their one big difference being that Gill does not set aside the au~hority of the church as does Milton. For God "requires nothing.to be believed for which he doth not abundantly satisfy the understanding if it will enlarge itself and desire to be satisfied, 11 52 and· hath not given us the knowledge of himself in his words that, as parrots in a cage which with much ado are taught

50 Ibid., II, 155-156. Compare with Chillingworth, who states "right Reason, grounded on divine revelation and common notions, written by God in the hearts of all men, and deducing, according to the never failing rules of logic, consequent deductions from them. 11 The Religion of Protestants, preface, p. $.

51 Ibid.·, II, 154-155. Compare with Milton 1 s .statement in Of Reformation: "But it will be reply1d, the Scriptures are difficult to be understood. • •. Tis true there be some Books that remain clouded; yet ever that which is most necessary to be known is most easie, and that which is most difficult so farre expounds itself ever, as to tell us how little it imports our saving knowledge. • • • If we will but purge that intellectual ray which God hath planted in us, then we would believe the~ own plainnes, and perspicuity, calling to· them to be instructed,not only the wise, and learned, but the simple, the poor, the babes, foretelling an extraordinary effusion of God's Spirit •• •" Of Reformation, c. E., III, 32-33. 52 .!hl&•i preface, p. 15. ·~ .. I

a few words and then.can say no more, so we spould hold ourselves content when we can say Creed;' but that, by continual. meditation on his word, our know ledge, and so our love and fear of him, might be in creased daily.53 Gill evidently believes that there can ultimately be no opposition between faith and reason. In his belief they are complimentary in one sense, • "for reason is busied in the proof of some general conclusion, which is to· be held for a truth, and so received of every man; but faith is the appli- cation of that conclusion to a man's own selr. 11 54 In the interpretation more usually taken in the treatise, faith is "a supply of reason in things understandable, as the imagination is of sight in things_ that are yisible. 0 5~ .Barker states that Like Milton. • • Gill is convinced that what is not understood is yet understandable, is rational, and not mysterious, just as what is beyond the reach of sight is yet 'visible'; and he is convinced that, with divine assistance~ human capacity for understand ing may be increased.5b Gill feels that his tendency of the human soul is inevitable. Because reasoning and understanding is more natural to the soul of man than to believe, and because the soul, as every other thing, joys in the natural

53 Ibid., I, 65. Compare with }1.ilton's statement in Areopagitica "When God gave himlf.da:i/ reason, he gave him freedom to choose, for reason is but choosing; he had bin else a meer artificiall Adam, such an Adam as he is in the motions." · Areopagitica, C. E., I.V, 319. 54 1!2!1., preface, P• 16.

55 ~., preface, pp. ·9-10. 56 Barker, P• 535. .... /

abilities of itself, therefore, though the reasonable soul do believe what it is taught by the Spirit of Christ instructing it, yet, if that blessed Spirit vouchsai'e further to enable the natural abilities that it may see the reason of the lessons talight, it triumphs more therein.57 · · Mi.lton' s basis for the idea ex.pressed in Areopagitica "closing up truth to truth" and his defense of the sects for toleration may well have had its source in Gill's rationalism. As Gill expresses it, the higher speculation of them whom God shall vouch safe to enlighten for their further progress from faith to faith, from knowledge to knowledge, till all ·:the Holy Church come to be partakers of those things, · new and old, that are kept for him in store, when she shall come unto the fulness of the measure of the age of Christ, that is, the perfect knowledge of all :those things which our Lord in his time taught his disciples, who were not able then to hear them, till they had re ceived the light of the Holy Spirit from above.58

Just as the· zeal of Young 1 s Hope' s Encouragement finds an echo in Milton's prose, the spirit of rational faith ex.pressed by Gill finds its reflection there also. Thus it was Gill, and those thinkers like him, that. tended to move Milton away from the conservative position of Young. Indeed a majority of Milton's prose·is concerned with the concept of "right reason" and the establishment of a society in-which such reason could exist. In this respect his thinking is similar to Gill's effort to establish its place in religion.59

57 Gill, preface, p. 9. 58 Ibid., preface, p. 18. See Areopagitica: "To be still searching what we know not, by what we know, still closing up truth to truth as we find it••• this is the golden rule of Theology ••• , and makes up the best harmony in a Church; not the forc't and outward \lllion <;>f cold neutrall, and inwardly divided minds." Areopagitica, .9..:...§., ry, 339. 59 Barker, p. 535. ,/ 70

In Paradise Lost, Milton seems to be attempting to explain the f'ailure of' "right reason" to achieve .its ideal end, and. the lesson incul- cated in the poem has its counterpart in Gill as well. Gill, however, was not completely unaware of the danger of the full use of reason. In a passage which expresses most clearly the central thought in Milton's pros~ and poetry, Gill says, ;· You have need to know that this reason and the like which we make from our understanding, hath a more sure foundation in the truth of God; for therefore ~s the light of reasoning and understanding in man, as a gloss or image of the divine wisdom, created by him in us (John 1.4; Eph. 4.24) that we might thereby be led unto the knowledge of him and so un to that happiness for which we are created. There fore the understanding doth evermore apply itself unto the truth and makes the will to enjoy therein and to hate that which is false and impossible. For reason in man being the image of Christ, the second Adam, is set in the Paradise of God, freely to eat of every tree therein, that is, to consider the whole creature, which yields unto reason infinite truths as fruit whereon to feed, to the praise of him who hath created it. But if she that is given to him for his help, that is, the imagination, his Herah, the mother.:;of all living (for by the imag ination alone the forms of all things live and are lively presented to reason), .if she, I say, deal treacherously with him, and without him entertain speech with the crafty Serpent, then is he by her easily persuaded to taste of the forbidden fruit, to follow her foolish and wicked suggestions and to let into his understanding falsehood and errors, which cannot stand with the light of truth, but are only according to the traditions of arts, falsely so called~ and the authorities of men misled by opinions. oO

It is of little consequence whether or not Milton read the preceding passage. The important thing to note is that Milton came under the tutelage of .Dr. Gill, an eminent scholar who held these ideas.

60 Gill, ·sacred Philosoph:y;, I, 51-52......

CHAPI'ER VI

THE DIODATI INFLUENCE

No general biographical research on Milton's earlier life would be ' complete without a discussion of his most intimate friend, Charles Diodati.

Charles Diodati is .important for a number of reasons. "Charles Diodat~ was

the only friend of Milton's own age ~ell known to us at any period of his life. 111 We have several extant writings of Milton which clearly indicate the poet's regard for his schoolboy companion. Masson points out that the intimacy which had sprung up between the two boys was surprising because of its intensity and because the boys were not in the same forms. Although they were of similar age, Charles Diodati seems to have been in a higher

form than· Milton was when the poet came to St. Paul 1 s School~ 2 The Diodati influence is of significance to the thesis of this paper, for Charles Diodati represents a further attraction for Milton to nonconforillity. A review· of the Diodati family history as it influenced Milton's friend denotes this trend toward nonconformity 1!1 Charles, who ini·,turn must have influenced Milton •.

DIODATI 1S ANCESTRY

Perhaps the best int~oduction to the Diodati ancestry would be a quote taken from Donald Clayton Dorian's preface to his book The English Diodatis.

• • • The history of their f arnily in Italy and Geneva did provide the Erigli~h Di6datis,:with!;.a·; strong trad-

l Fletcher, I, 415 •.

2 Mass~n, I, 103. / 72

ition of willingness to make any sacrifices de manded by their convictions and to adjust their plans as radically as necessary to circumstances changed by unavoidable losses and disappointed hopes.3 . . ·

This "strong tradition of willingness to make any sacrifices demanded by their convictions". is evident in the sixteenth century in Italy, and here we shall proceed with our investigation of th'e· Diodati ancestry.

In the little north Italian republic of Lucca, the Diodatis were_ honored as one of the oldest patrician families. From the year 1300 their family had been distinquished mainly as physicians and men of liberal cul ture. In the middle of the fifteenth century, however, the Diodatis turned more often to business and public affairs and were soon established as one of the wealthiest and most influencial families in the aristocracy of Lucchese.

In Lucca,,a desire to purify the teachings of the church and the conduct of its officers and representives sprang not so much from the influence of the German and Swiss reformers as from the preaching and example of Pietro Martire Vermigli, commonly known as Peter Marty;. In posts prior to the one in Lucca he had aroused suspicion and resentment by his desire. to reform. Shortly after being appointed prior of San Frediano, he established what could be called a separate reformed congregation, of which he ~t:"'.?~ a pastor, and formed a college or seminar for his followers.4

3 Donald Clayton Dorian, The Enelish Diodatis (New Br'ilnswick, 1950), preface, pp. xi, xii. This passage could have been used to describe the elder John Milton. For a discussion of the scrivener's disinheritance for religious beliefs and his abilities to adapt to changes in circumstances, See phapter rv. 4 Ibid., P• 7. / ' .. _,

A major public event took place in 1541 which was to affect both . l . the reform preacher and the Diodati family. Lucca was chosen to be the conference site between Pope Paul III and the Emperor Charles V, following the Diet of Ratisbon. Vermigli was warned by Cardinal Contarini of ·a plot against him by the Lucchese monks. The Cardinal cautioned Vermigli to modify his preaching. Contarini ~ad misjudged the character and dedi cation of the reforming prior, and Verrnigli strongly affirmed his intention of declaring the truth. The Diodatis were given the honor of accommodating the Emperor. The choice of Michele Diodati for this honor was a natural one, for he was then "Gonfaloniere" and a munificent patron of arts.. and letters. In short, he was the leading citizen of the area. A year after the Pope's visit to Lucca, the Congregations of the Holy Office at Rome began to investigate those groups in Italian towns which had adopted more or less Protestant doctrines. It was not a surprise to Vermigli when he was suJ11moned to the chapter of his order at Genoa and, realizing that he would be treated as a heretic for his teaching, decided to flee from Italy. The "reformed" church at Lucca continued in spite of the absence of its pastor. In fact, Vermigli's flight served as an inspiration to at least one convert, Nicolao Di?dati, the younger brother of Michele. Nicolao dreamed of finding beyond the Alps a new home where he could more openly avow his faith.5 With the ascension of Paul rv to the Papal throne, the apparent toleration of Protestantism in' Lucca came to an end. The resulting

5 ~., PP• 8-9. . 74

'persecution of the little reformed congregation at Lucca caused some of the members to conform; others preferred to abandon their homes and seek havens in Switzerland or France. The suppression of the Reformation became so severe in Italy that emigration had to be done secretly. All those who chose to flee rather than deny their profound religious faith were sus tained by the hope that in a new homeland the freedom to worship openly

would be granted. One of the first expeditions to flee the current religious perse- cutions in Lucca was lead by Carlo Diodati •. He left Lucca ostensibly to

serve an apprenticeship in a banking establishment at Lyons. Once he was " safe in Lyons, he openly professed his acceptance of the reformed faith. . . By the end of the year 1567 he had gone to Geneva, where his name was in- scribed in the registers of the Italian church. He was the first Diodati

to settle in Geneva. Carlo soon gave indications of his qualities of leadership, for he

was received as Habitant de Geneve and became a Bourgeois and a member of

the Council of the Two Hundred, all in a few year's time. In 1574, he was chosen commander of a company of Italian soldiers raised for the city's defense against one of the periodic attacks by the Duke of Savoy, and distin

quished himself by his violent conduct.6

The wealth that Carlo Diodati acquired from an extensive banking operation and in the manufacture of silk was al ways at the service of his

adopted land. His judgment and a~itude for leadership were available as

6 Ibid., pp. ll-12. well. Carlo took as a "personal duty the responsibility of doing. all he could to maintain the political and· religious independence of Genev~. 117

In reco~ition of Carlo's loyal citizenship, he was for thirty-five years (1584-1619) continuously a member of the Councils of the city. In ..addition to earning prestige in commercial and public affairs, he became a leading member of the flourishing Italian church. During his rise to a position of influence and respect, Carlo had· ten children borne to him by his second wife, Maria Mio. Of these ten children, only two were to exert an influence on Milton: Theodore Diodati~ founder of the English branch of the Diodatis; . and Giovanni, later famous as.a theologian.a

THEODORE DIODATI

Theodore Diodati, father of Milton's friend, entered the medical profession eager to succeed on merit alone. Upon reaching the age of twenty one, he entered Leyden to study medicine. There were two factors involved in his choice of Leyden. His father was a conderrmed heretic by the Catholics; therefore, Theodore had to choose a Protestant school. Equally as important was Leyden's reputation for a fine medical faculty. This reputation was evidently well earned, for we learn from the title page of a thesis which Diodati published in 1569, that Petrus Pavius was his teacher. Pavius had a wide reputation for his k:i-iowledge of botany,and anatomy. He also embraced . 9 the ancient as well as the modern, the theoreticB.l as well as the practical. .

7 .!!E4·, pp. 23-24.

8 illf!. 1 P• ·24. 9 Ibid., pp. 27-28. / 76 /

Ip spite of his progress toward his degree, Theodore Diodati seems to have abandoned Leyden after only two years without finishing the curriculum.

He left Holland and went to England to live. · An explanation of his pre mature departure from Leyden might be that a degree was apparently not needed to practice .. medicine in England. Just as Carlo established a new home for himself in Geneva, Theodore adopted England as his native land. It should be noted that Theodore Dioaati.did not immediately practice medicine upon his arrival in England. He became a tutor to the wealthy influential Harrington.family. To Theodore's care was entrusted the teaching o! John Harrington, the only living son and heir to the Harrington estates.

Dorian describes the Harrington position in gl~wing terms. The Harringtons not only possessed great weatth and bright political prospects; they were pighly regarded for their excellent moral and religious principles, and their blood relationships and cultural interests linked them closely to many representatives of the best in English life and literature at the time.10

1bere can be no doubt that the association with the Harrington lramiJ.y assured Diodati the best possible associations and promised almost unlimited oppor- tunities for his professional advancement. In April, 1603, James I was making his leisurely trip from Edinburgh to London to ascend the throne. Sir John Harrington entertained the royal

l party at Burley, one of his two estates in Rutlandshire, while his wife, with other F.nlgish'iadies, went to Scotland to greet the new queen. The Countess of Bedford was promptly appointed lady of her majesty's bed cha.nber, and Sir

John was created Baron Hf!rrington of Exton. A greater show of royal favor

10 ~., P• j6. / 77

was bestowed on the Harringtons when the King signed a privy seal order committing Elizabeth, the heir to the throne, to their care. The King's choice was based on sound judgment, for Lord Harrington had gained the

reputation of devout Protestantism and dependability of character. Further~ more he had shown his interest in education by the care he took in providing .. for his own son. Theodore Diodati' s main responsibility probably was to

continue to supervise the education of John Harrington. It ~~uld not be

unlikely, however, that he became one of the tutors of the Princess in French or Italian or both. Because of the prominent roles that Sir John and the Princess were I to play it was inevitable that they should leave the quiet country surround

ings. On July 6, 1607, Sir John was admitted a fellow-colID'Iloner at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. The Princess, receiving more and more demands .for her·appearance at court, found the Combe Abbey too remote. Before the end of the year 1608, she was granted, at the age of twelve, and establishment of her own. Her change of residence did not relieve the Harringtons of their duty as guardians, and Diodati remained with the family in their new location in close attendance upo~ the Princess.11 Dorian summarizes Theodore .Diodati's position in England at the end of his first decade there. By the end of 1608, then, at the close of his first decade in England, Theodore Diodati was in the fav orable situation of being a trusted and responsible attendant in one of the most prominent families in the nation. He had made his contribution to the education of_ Sir John Harrington, who was now one of

11 !QMi., pp. 42-43, 46. _, 78 /

the intimates of the heir apparent to the throne. He continued in the service of the family, his attendance now being rather on the princess h~r self. Under ·such distinquished auspices he had laid a solid foundation for his later career in England .12 ·

In 1603 Diodati's duties began to change from those of a tutor to those of a physician. This change came about gradually as the usefulness of his medical knowledge became apparent. By 1612 the transition from the duties of tutor to those of physician was complete~ 13

At this stage in Theodore Diodati' s life it seemed a·s if nothing .. could prevent him fr.oim having a successful career as a physician. In a

\ stunning series of misfortunes, Diodati saw his excellent prospects disappear. By early 1614, Princess Elizabeth had married and had left En.gland, Baron Harrington and his son were dead, and Lady Harrington was left practically impoverished, the family's estate wasted away through the costly privilege of bringing up the King's daughter.14 This series of misfortunes did not shake Diodati's determination to practice medicine in England. In 1615 he returned to Leyden, passed his examination there, and then appeared before a committee of the Royal College of Physicians. Without their consent Diodati could never become a fully licensed physician, able to practice in London as well as in England's country- side. In 1617 he passed their examination and settled in the parish of Saint

Mary Magdalen, a neighborhood noted as a medical center.

12 Ibid., p. 41. 13 For a cormnentary on how an iml.icensed physician such as Theodore Diodati could practice medicine and become Elizabeth's personal physician, see Donald Clayton Dorian, The English Diodatis, pp. 64-72.

14 ~., p. 79. 79

.. •'

A comparison of Theodore Diodati 1 s career with that of his father,

Carlo Diodati, reveals striking similarities~ Both ~en achieved a sig nificant social and financial position in a foreign country in a relatively short time. Both men achieved this position not through influence, but through their own ~ative abilities, overcoming the normal hostility given a foreigner. Both men were dedicated to their convictions. Carlo was dedicated to the preservation of religious toleration in Geneva, while Theodore was dedicated to the pursuit of his career in medicine. The her itage that belonged to Charles Diodati was indeed one of which he could be proud. John Milton, his close friend and classmate at St. Paul's,,must have been very familiar with this heritage, and one can imagine the effect that it had on the poet.

GIOVANNI DIODATI

,, - Carlo Diodati had another son who was to exert a profound influence on Milton. On June 6, 1576, Giovanni Diodati was born in Lucca. He was among those who were forced to flee religious prosecution in Italy. Giovanni, a youth of eighteen when Theodore departed, had meantime achieved distinction as a theologian, writer, and international spokesman for Protestanism. Dorian describes him as attaining "eminence in new fields by his independent merits and efforts, without t?e benefit of family predecessors in whose footsteps to follow. 1115

In his' highly successful career he showed such early promise that he was made professor of Hebrew at the Academy of Geneva at the age of twenty-one.

15 ~., P• 98. 80

Two years later he began to teach theology in addition to Hebrew. Giovanni's influence did not stay within the cloistered w;alls of the Acadclll,Y'. After 1608, when he was ordained, he gained wide fame as a minister, visiting many Protestant churches in France in an official capacity in 1611 and stay-, ing at Nimes for some time in 1614. In 1603 Giovanni gained· an international literary reputation by translating the whole Bible into Italian. This work is recognized today as one of the important Protestant versions~ In 1608 he added to his literary fame by translating the Psalms into Italian verse. These two literary accomplishments indicate what could be· regarded. as Giovanni's driving am- .. bition in life: to convert his native land, and especially the republic of 16 Venice, to his own creed. Giovanni's reputation as a theologian was confirmed when he was chosen as one of the two representatives sent by Geneva to the Synod of Dort, called for November, 1618. The purpose of the Synod was to settle the theo logical disputes that had arisen between the.followers of Jacobus Arminius (1560-1609) and those of Franciscus Gomarus (1563-161J.). Arminius had taught the doctrine of modified free will while at Leyden, and Gomarus had insisted on teaching the doctrine of predestination by election •. Both representatives from Geneva took the side of Gomarus and it was perhaps through their influence that the issue was decided in favor of predestination. Diodati was chosen as one of the d~puties to draw up the definition of the Synoq's action.17

16 Eugene Choisy,· "Giovanni Diodati," The New Schaff-Herzo Religious Enc clo edia of Reli ious Knowled e, ed., Samuel Macauley Jackson New York, London, 1909 , III, 439. 17 Fletcher, I; 418. / 81 .(

It was in the following year, 1619, that Giovanni made his first trip to England. Fresh !rom his recent triumph at the Synod of Dort, Giovanni must have made quite an impression on his nephew Charles. If John Milton was acquainted at this time with Charles, there may have been a casual meeting between the youth and the celebrated theologian •. : . It is an established fact that Giovanni Diodati and John Milton did meet during :·¥Utori~ s Italian trip. By this time Giovanni had gained a reputation for instructing young men of rank from various parts of Europe who boarded in his house.· At the time of Milton's visit, it is possible' that he might have.met Charles Gustavus, later.King of Sweden, and several princes of German Protestant houses who were all studying with Diodati at that time~ Masson quotes Milton as saying "at Geneva, I was daily in t!ie society of John Diodati, the most learned professor of Theology. iil8 Masson also states that in all likelihood it was from Giovanni Diodati that Milton learned of· the death of his friend,~:Charle's. If Milton had met Giovanni Diodati in 1619, his second encounter was made under quite different circumstances. Milton had finished his college training and had just completed a rigorous reading program. He arrived in Geneva with fresh praises ringing in his ears from numerous hosts on his Italian and European tour. This meeting, then, was a meeting of two educated theologians; one had already earned his reputation as a strict adherent of the Calvinistic faith, while the other had yet to earn his reputation as a nonconformist whose principles of toleration could not accept Calvinism.

18 Masson, I, 833. It is difficult to tell from Masson 1 s reference which one of Milton's works he is quoting. It is perhaps to Giovanni Diodati, as well as to Tho~s Young, that Milton

owes his theological knowledge of Calvinism in the form of Presbyterianism. Something occurred during Milton's Italian journey which later was to cause

him to reject a career as an Anglican minister, and one wonders if this rejection was the result of his visit to Giovanni'Diodati.

CHARLES DIODATI

i.; Charles Diodati was born in 1608, the son of Theodore Diodati. Donald Clayton Dorian remarks, It is unlikely••• that any of his .Lffharles Diodati'..27 experiences in the schoolroom were as significant to his later life as two new personal relationships, one probably and the other certainly dating from this time. The first was his introduction to his celebrated uncle, Jean (Giovanni) Diodati, and the other his friendship with John Milton.19. It is the intimate personal relationship which existed between Charles and Milton that bears close examination. The influence of Charles is evident· in many of Milton's childhood decisions.

There are at least two factors which caused the youths to come in

constant contact with one another. ~oth went to St. Paul's School, and both lived within a hundred yards of the school. Evidently they quickly discovered their congeniality, for they soon formed a friendship which was to survive many separations for many years to come. Scholarship has proved that, although Milton and Diodati were the same age, Diodati was ahead of Milton in his scholastic career by at least two years. This fact assumes greater imoortance in a comparison of the careers of these two men, a comparison which points out a striking number

.19 Dorian, p. 98. I /

- •'

of instances in which Milton follows the example set by Charles.

Whon Diodati received his Master 0£ Arte dog~ae, he was not yet ready to choose a profession and qualify for its practice. In all proba- · bility, he went to live at his father's home with no immediate plans for a

professional career of any kind. Four year~ later, .Milton began his stay at his father's estate at Horton, not venturing upon a professional career because he, too, was unable to make a choice. Even the types of careers

which lay open to Diodati and ~li.lton were similar. The selection for Milton was: 1. The church, which was his parent's hope and to which most of his . schooling was directed. 2. A conunercial career, for which a successful foundation had been·

built by his father and the influence of the Diodati family. 3. A law career, in which his father could have given him much assistance. For Charles the choices were:

1. A conunercial career, in which he was almost assured of success because of his family connections.

2. A medical career, in which his father would be of great assistance.

3. A theological career, in which his uncle Giovanni Diodati would have been of great assistance. Milton's nature would not allow him to accept any of the choices which lay open to him. He felt entirely unsuited for the business or law profession

and, for the reason expressed in "Lycidas, 11 could not enter the Church. Therefore, he accepted his father's generous offer and retired to Horton \ /

. ~'

to develop his literary abilities. Diodati rejected S.:business career for reasons similar to Milton's. Medicine appealed to him, but the ill fortune that his father suffered, through no fault of his own, was an example too close to home for him to ignore. Upon eliminating the first two choices, Diodati found.theology more and more attractive. His uncle had gained high esteem. at home and abroad, ·as preacher, writer, and theologian.

In addition, the field of theology had given Giovanni a wide scope for his linguistic and literary abilities. For this reason Charles made his decision in favor of his uncle's profession rather than that of his father.20 Charles• personalty contained the basic ingredients that generally make a successful .minister. He had a naturaliy cheerful disposition and a sensitive enjoyment of such simple pleasures as the outdoors. He firmly believed in moderation and became conscientiously serious about matters of real weight. A genuine interest in linguistic and literary attainments was added to a.l:-1 his other attributes. Charles Diodati could be classified as a well-rounded man of the Renaissance. Dorian states that Diodati was Humane enough in tastes, understanding enough in his sympathies, to be Milton 1 s most congenial companion in all his varied moods, he ·also fully satisfied in character and intellect, his exacting friend's high requirements for a prospective clergyman of the English Church.21 Diodati enrolled in the AcadeJllY' of Geneva/on April 16, 1630, instead of attaching himself to the University faculty of theology and spending seven years there in pursuit of his Bachelor of Divinity degree. This change was undoubtedly influenced by his family connections with the Swiss Institution

20 Ibid., PP• 124-126 • . 2l ~., p. 126. • O;.J ,, /

and the city. The doctrinal illiberality of Geneva must have h,een dis tasteful. to a man 0£ Diodati' s cultural I.breadth and genial temperament; therefore, a strong reason, such as dissatisfaction with the F.nglish

University's plan of theological preparation, must be advanced to.~xplain his decision.22 Perhaps the most striking evidence of the similarity in tempera- ments between John Milt,on and Diodati is revealed in Diodati 1 s final re jection of the Calvinist approach to theology. Dorian describes Diodati's reaction to the training he received in Geneva. "The longer he stayed in Geneva the less he found himself in sympathy with its rigid, almost fanat- ically intolerant Calvinism. 11 23 Unf ortunatel.y Diodati had chosen a time to go to Geneva when the leaders of the Protestant Reformation in Switzerland were ruthlessly suppressing heterodoxy with the same kind of zealous cruelty which caused Carlo Diodati to flee Catholic Italy. Charles returned to England with shaken hopes and disillusionment in the Church. Soon after his return, he began his study of medicine. Diodati 1 s reaction to the intolerant fanaticism of Calvinism would certainly have been Milton's reaction also. Milton would either have been disgusted with the lack of erudition of the instructors of F.ngland or shocked at the intolerance of the r.ef ormed churches of Calvinism. It is not unlikely that Charles Diodati 1 s failure to adjust to the illiberality of the Calvinistic churches of Geneva was the main topic ·' of conversation between him and John Milton for many months. Perhaps at this

22 Ibid., PP• 127, 130-131. 23 Ibid., p. 138.:e ;'/ 86

point, Milton took the final step toward nonconformity and toleration in his religious beliefs. On rejecting Ang1icanism and.Calvinism, he misht have thought of the sentiments expressed in Alexander Gill's Sacred Philosophy and determined that from now on he would trust only his reason and the divine word of the scripture.

EPITAPHIUM DAl~ONIS

Milton's sincere devotion to his boyhood friend, Charles Diodati, is substantiated in Milton's Epitaphium Damonis. This Latin elegy is the sole remnant of Milton's writing at this particular period in his life. I As in "Lycidas," Milton ha.s chosen once again the pastoral as the form in which he expresses his grief.· There is a difference between the two pastorals, however, for Diodati was Milton's friend in his boyhood, youth, and early manhood. Masson expresses well the <;iifferences between

"Lycidas11 and. Epitaphium Da.wnis. Hence Milton's grief for the death of Diodati, as it is expressed in the Epitaphiurn Damonis, is of a much more personal and intimate nature, far more suggestive of actual tears and sobs from him in his solitude, than anything discernible in the iLycidas' ••• 2~ The puzzling thing about Epitaphium Damonis is its artificiality of form; not only is it written in Latin, but_ the verse is hexameter. The principles of the pastoral are rigidly ind.tated. Despite this artificiality of form, Masson describes it as "one of the noblest things that Milton has left us, and certainly one of the most interesting in its pers~nal revelation. n25

·24 Masson, II, 85.

25 ~., P• 85. ,. / 87

Hanford points out that Milton was essentially under the influence o! his Italian trip and wrote Epitaphium Damonis with the Florentine audi- ence in mind. In spite of this fact, Hanford concurs with Masson's opinion when he writes "the expression of grief on loneliness, despite the artificiaJ. 1126 medium, is as sincere as it is beautiful. . Epitaphium Damonis is described by Dorian as "unique among }1ilton's mature writings in the poet's complete preoccupation with his own plainly expressed emotion - to the exclusion of any other participant's emotion. 1127 It is concerning this matter that Milton breaks from literary tradition. All the necessary figures of the pastoral form do not grieve for Damon, (Diodati). directly, but through Thyrsis (Milton). The nymphs of Himera are invoked to assist Thyrsis in his lament for Damon. The sheep and the crops do not suffer for sorrow of Damon but through Thyrsis's neglect of them. The many shepherds and shepherdesses named in the poem attempt only to console Thyrsis, but do not mourn Damon as a lost comrade. In these respects Epitaphium

Damonis is the complete antithesis of 11 Lycidas, 11 in which many mourners answer the call "who would not sing for Lycidas? 11 The poem, with its emphasis on Milton's personal bereavement, tells us considerably less than most pastoral elegies of the departed shepherd. The few passages that deal with Milton's high opinion of Diodati are very meaningful in view of the qualities which are emphasized. The following passage relates Diodati1 s devotion to true piety, upright conduct, and the arts of Pallas.

'26 Hanford, John Milton, F.nglishman, p. 98. 27 Dorian, pp. 177-178. I , 8B / ..... '

To you, as second only to Daphnis, as long as Poles, as long as Faunus shall love the country-side, if it counts for ought to have cherished faith like the faith of· olden days, to have cherished righteousness, and the arts of Pallas, and to have had as comrade a man of song.28

Diodati, as a man of cheerful conversation, polished wit, and merry

companion, is described in the following quotation. Who will teach me to lighten consuming cares, who to beguile the long nights with sweet converse, ••• while the evil South Wind confounds all the world out doors, and thunders down through the elm? • • • Or, in the· summer-time, ••• who will renew for me your blandishments, your laughter, your sallies of Cecrop- . ian wit, and your cultured graces?29 Diodati's medical inclination is indicated in the following passage:· You will run through, for me, your healing potions, your herbs, the hellebore, and the lowly crocus •• • , and the arts too, of the healers.30 Milton describes Diodati's moral and spiritual purity in these lines:

You, too, have a place among the gods - no elusive hope beguiles me, Drunon; you, too, surely have a place runong them, for to what other place would your sweet and holy candor have made her way, whith er your snow-white rnanhood?31

Two additional revealing pa~sages from Epitaphium Damonis should be examined. In the first of these two quotations, Milton draws a vivid contrast between the casual associations of animals and birds, so easily replaced if death ends some comradeship, and the lasting isolation of that man who, having

28 Epitaphium Damonis, C. E., I, 299.

29~., P• 301.

30~., P• 311.

.31 ~., p. 315. - 89 / '

been fortunate enough to find one true comrade, has forever lost him in death. How alike are the bullocks that frolic over the meadows! Of one heart are they, one with another, by the Law's decree, close comrades all. Not one sets apart from the herd or this or that as his (particular) friend •••• The lowly sparrow always has someone with whom to spend his days, with whom to fly gladly about all the heaps of spelt, visit ..... ing again, late, his own shelter: but if chance has done this mate to death. • • straightway the sparrow, flying from the spot, seeks another to be his comrade. But we mortals are a rugged race, a race harried by accursed fates, alien one to another in soul, and discordant in spirit: hardly does man find out of a thousand one ~ only one - that matches himself, or, if fortune ••• at last vouchsafes one to our prayers, him someday, in an hour whenever one expects it not, steals from us leaving us lost, everlasting, on into the (endless) ages.32 The preceding quotation represents an unusual departure from the style typical of Milton 1 s Latin poetry. As he attempts to give meaning to his loss, Milton frees himself from models and precedents, and in a series of original images expresses his deep sorrow over Diodati's death.33 The second revealing passage pictures Milton's frustration caused by the death of Diodati as well as his own inability to compose lofty verse. Alas, perish the herbs, perish too, the arts of healers, the plants, since they profited not at all him who was their master. I myself too - my pipe was sounding forth some lofty strain, I know not what - another day is come, the day following the eleventh night - • I myself, as it chanced, had set my lips to pipes, pipes that were new: none the less, bursting their joinings, they leaped asunder, and could brook no longer the weighty strains.34

32 Ibid., pp. 306-307. 33 Dorian, p. 180.

34 Epitaphium. Damonis, c. E., I, Jll. _,

These lines are described as "achieving the almost impossible concord '. .; between a genuine outcry of grief. and coherent artist.ic eX]')ression. n35

SUMMARY OF THE DIODATI INFLUENCE A great deal of attention has been devoted not only to Charles

Diodati but to his family as well. In view·of the intina.te relationsh~p existing between Charles and John Milton, a study has:: been:.madc-.0r.::Cha·tles• · family and background. From the history of the Diodati family in the. little province of Lucca, Italy, we can see that one of the strong characteristics of' this family is courage of conviction. The Diodati. family, as well as the elder John Milton, suffered for their religious beliefs. The chose to .abandon social prominence, wealth, and political influence to keep faith with the new reformed religion. To a smaller degree Theodore Diodati demonstrates this family trait when he resolves to be a registered physician even while suffering a series of misfortunes that would have crushed a lesser man. Another strong character trait of the Diodati family is independence. They desired to achieve success through individual merit rather than through influence. After leaving behind wealth, political influence, and social prominence in Italy, Carlo Diodati was able to establish himself on his own merit in a relatively short time as one of the leading citizens of Geneva.

Theodore Diodati was able to accomplish the ·same thing in England, where, within a decade of his arrival, he was able to become "a:trusted and responsible attendant in one of the most prominent.'"families in the nation, 11 tutoring both Sir John Harrington and Princess Elizabeth.

35 Dorian, p. 181. , 'j.l. /

This same Diodati family produced one of the leading international spokesmen for Protestantism in Giovanni Diodati. Giovanni had no family predecessor in whose footsteps he could follow. He excelled in his theo logical profession through merit alone, as did the physician, Theodore Diodati. Due to his literary accomplishment anct his translations of the Bible into Italian' and the Psalms into Italian verse, he became one of.the best known of the.Diodatis. The family's background and traditions are important for an under standing of Charles Diodati, ¥.d.lton's closest friend. Charles was justly proud of his family, and undoubtedly Milt?n was thoroughly.aware of and admired these family attributes. Perhaps he mentally compared the xeligious persecution of his father, by Richard }.Lilton, to the persecution experienced by Carlo Diodati in Italy. Certainly he became more aware of the horror and uselessness of religious persecution. In this respect, the Diodati family guided Milton closer to toleration of all sects, excepting Roman Catholicism. Charles Diodati's trip to Geneva in pursuit of a theological career is an event of great importance in connection with this thesis. It is his rejection of the illiberality of the Calvinistic doctrine of Geneva that must have influenced 1'1ilton. To reject this doctrine must have been difficult for Charles, for it would have been painful for his Uncle Giovanni Diodati to accept. Once again, this demonstrates the nonconforming tendency of the Diodati family.

The Epitaphiwn Damonis describes the powerful attraction th~t Charles Diodati and John }li.lton had for each other. His influence upon Milton's thinking must have been profound in many areas. , - 92 /

THESIS SUMMARY

The religious beliefs of John Milton aro readily available for tho student's perusal in the Christian Doctrine. In that remarkable statement John Milton reflects a bold independence of mind in both theological. and ecclesiastical matters. Based on his.two guidelines of scripture and reason, Milton has chosen from each sect or denomination that which he be lieves within himself to be right. The purpose of this thesis has been to show that-the position to which Milton arrived on religious matters was the direct result of the childhood influences discussed in this paper. Milton's juvenilia through Epitaphium Damonis reveals little in clination toward the heresies set forth in the Christian Doctrine. Even those topics which are theological in nature are treated non-controversially. The famous "Nativity Ode," and the minor poem "Upon the Circumcision,". can be interpreted as orthodox or unorthodox. Whether Milton intended this de liberately is not the subject of this investigation. One does receive a hint of Milton's doctrine of free will which is a considerable factor in his attempt to "Justify the ways of God to men" in Paradise Lost, in the

"Nativity Ode," and to a lesser extent in "Upon the Circumcision." The one exception to the statement above is "Lycidas. 11 In "Lycidas11 there is no equivocation concerning Milton's position on the clergy. In a startling and effective image, l1ilton att~cksthe crorrupt clergy through St. Peter, the first bishop of Rome and the guardian of the gates of heaven. n1ycidas11 is significant for it is considered perhaps the only work of Milton's early period that shows dissatisfaction with either the theological or ecclesiastical principles of the Anglican Church. In this sense "Lycidas" / 93

indicates Milton's leanings toward nonconformity. "Lycidas," however, does not attack the institution of Prelacy so much as the people who have become Prelates. It is a biting, lashing satire on the corruption of the clergy, but it does not enter into the controversy of apostolic succession, Wiich was to become the central argument in the church government controversy of ,., the early sixteen forties. A review of Milton's juvenilia does not shed light on the position he assumed in the Christian Doctrine. To accClllilt for the heterodox positions shown therein, a study in this thesis has been made of the personal influences exerted on Milton during his formative years. Those people treated as in fluences include John Milton's father, Thomas Young, Alexander Gill, Sr., and Charles Diodati. A curious pattern becomes.apparent as a result of the study of these personal associations. From this pattern evolve two chief characteristics: ·nonconformity. and unshakable religious convictions. Not only are these traits apparent in the four persons previously mentioned, but in Milton's ancestry

as well. Richard Mil~on, the poet's grandfather, was a Roman Catholic under the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI; Mary, and briefly Elizabeth, and suffered great financial loss as a result. The poet's father was disinherited for his protestant beliefs. The next dominant person to influence Milton was Thomas Young. In the preface to his chief work, The Lord's Day, Thomas Young is revealed as a man of great learning, judgment, piety, and humility. Young was a.~igure who might well gain the admiration and respect of John Milton. Just as the elder John Milton attracted the poet towards Anglicanism, Thomas Young in- / 94

fluenced him toward Puritanism. Young's father had been a dedicated

Presbyterian minister who, as in the case of Milton's .father' was not afra~d to speak o~ for his religion. This dedication was passed on to his son Thomas, wno, as a member of Smectymnuus, ably defended his religion •. The extent of Young's penetration into Milton's religious views is clearly. shown in Arthur Barker's "Milton's Schoolmaster~:, 11 in which Barker draws many close parallels in religious beliefs between Young's Dies Dominica and

.Milton's early anti-prelatical tracts. ·Young fits the pattern set by the earlier influences on Milton. He showed strong signs of nonconformity by coming to England to start .. his profession. As London was still an Anglican stronghold at the time, his reception must have been somewhat trying •. The similarities in religious .view points outlined in Dies Dominica and in Milton's early anti-prelatical tracts indicate Young's willingness to speak out for his.~eligion even in the orthodox home of the elder John Milton. His participation in the church government controversy further demonstrates his nonconformity.

lfiOre important than the other influences which Young exerted ~on

Milton was the love for classical and biblical literature which the tutor

·passed pn to the poet. The last evidence of Young's effect oh Milton is found in Thomas Young's sermon entitled Hope's Encouragement, delivered to the House of Commons on February 28, 1641~. In this sermon there is a conviction of divine support and direction very similar to Milton's own, and beyond that a sense of inescapable destiny which moved .the poet to enter the church government controversy. The close relationship of the poet·and the tutor µndoubtedly sowed the seeds of conflict in Milton's mind. Milton respected and loved his father and , \ 'J) /

writes of it in Ad Patrern; however, he also .:respected and had great

affe~tion for Thomas Young. Both men were excellent representatives of their respective faiths. This conflict may have caused Milton to select what he felt was superior in each religion, adopting that portion as his own belief. This tendency to pick.and choose from each denomination perhaps be came stronger in Milton during his years at St. Paul's School. It was under

the guidance of Alexander Gill, Sr., that Milton came into contact with th~ philosophy of reason in theological arguments. Alexander Gill, Sr. presents the unusual picture of a devout Anglican minister defending his religion not by divine revelation, but by reason. Gill could not become a complete ration alist, however, for he could not allow reason to conflict with divine rev elation or the conclusions already established as orthodox on other gr9unds. Gill did not see the danger which a Protestant alliance with reason and the subsequent· freeing of the intellect might cause Christianity. This danger may have materialized in the form of popular deism, a form which Gill was

bound to abhor. Both Gill and Mil.ton insisted upon the necessity of reason~ in things religious, and both insisted upon the authority of tho scripturo. They differ, however, on a fundrunental point: where Gill's position contains the elements of orthodoxy, Milton denies the right of any other authority to pass judgme~t upon the validity of reason's interpretation of scripture.l In view of his inability to employ reason to its fullest extent, Gill was constantly diverted from his attack on atheism to skirmishing with heretics, his knowledge thereof being amazing. It is interesting to note that many of the heresies attacked in Gill's Sacred Philosophy were to find a place in

1 Christian Doctrine, ~., XIV, 15. _, 9 /

}lilton1 s later theological tenets.

Although Sacred Philosophz is.the expression pf Gill's deepest con victions, it is not his best known work. This honor is given to Logonomia Anglica. In this work Gill defends the English language as proper for literary works. Gill even goes so far as to criticize Chaucer for his use

of imr)orted French and Italian words. It is possible th~t Gill planted the

thought in Milton's mind which eventually led the poet to forgo a career as a Latinist in favor of writing in the English language. Gill also fits the pattern of the influences of Milton's childhood. If Gill had been a conformist, he would never have entertained the ,ideas expressed in the Sacred Philosophz. Furthermore, to support his religion he was willing to publish these thoughts in the face of opposition. The last influence discussed in this thesis was that of the Diodati family. Epitaohium Damonis embodies dramatic evidence of the close relationship between John Milton and Charles Diodati. The closeness of this relationship assumes significance as it presupposes that Milton was well:ncquainted with the Diodati background. Like ~.d.lton 1 s ancestors, the Diodati ancestors

suffered for their religious beliefs, turning to the reformed religion in the midst of Catholic Italy. The Diodatis .were nonconformists and were determined in religious matters. The family's adherence to their principles, and their qualities of leadership, were illustrated by Carlo in Geneva and Theodore in England. Charles was a worthy inheritor ·of the Diodati tradition, and Milton respected him: for his fine l:ineage. The careers of John Milton and Charles Diodati were very similar, the one exception being that Charles was from two to four years ahead in his ,· / 97

scholastic endeavor. This similarity assumes greater importance when Charles' brief sojourn as a theologian is considered. Charles had all the qualities that constitute a good minister. Yet in a short time he completely rejected the illiberality of Calvinism in the reformed church of Geneva. The familiar pattern appears once again. Charles, even th.ough his uncle Giovanni Diodati was a leading theological figure in Geneva, re jected a theological career in favor of a medical career. Charles Diodati and his family represent yet another influence toward nonconformity and self-determination in religious affairs.

Milton was surrounded in his early days by examples of nonconformity in people whom he loved, respected, and admired. Nonconformity in each instance demanded courage in religious convictions. The scale seems almost

equally balanced between influences in the direction of Anglicanism, re presented by his father and by Alexander Gill, Sr., and influences toward Puritanism, represented by Thomas Young and Charles Diodati. It is not difficult to assume that Milton came to the conclusion that neither religion was entirely right or wrong. Gill ~upplied the determining factor on· which Milton was to base his religious beliefs. This factor was rationalism applied to religious controversies. Thus, in ill the influences treated in this paper, the same pattern of nonconformity and adherence to deep personal reli gious convictions guided Milton to establish a religious platform \'.hich was drawn from many different denominations and faiths. A full development of this study will show that Milton throughout his career was an independent and an individualist whose church is his own church and whose sect is his own sect. There is no indication in Milton's juvenilia 98

of the heterodox views which he was later to assume in the Christian Doctrine.

Therefore it is rrry contention that this belief was formed by Milton perhaps as the direct result of his childhood influences. Milton's participation in the church goverrunent controversy was as a member of the Rqot and Branch· Patty and not as a member of the Presbyterian Party. Finally, the heterodox views in the Christian Doctrine were the same views that he held at an early.age. George Newton Conklin in Biblical Criticism and Heresy in Milton states the thesis of my proposed study in the followins manner: What must be particularly noticed in Milton's treatment of this fundamental basis of purely scriptural theology is his insistence on absolute independence and original ity. This insistence ori Ivlilton 1 s part ••• was not simply .. a matter of the undesirability of dependence on human auth ority. On the ~ontrary, to Milton, any dependency but to scripture alone under Divine guidance was expressly for bidden; for, indeed, such a procedure would impose a yoke on the Holy Spirit itself••• 2

2 George Newton Conklin, Biblical Criticism and Heresy in Milton (Columbia, 1949), p. 32. / -' 99

APPENDIX A

Conjectured C'lirrioulum 0£ St. Paul's School. 1618 - 1625

The cxcercises and themes were correlated with the authors and guided by textbooks of grammar and rhetoric.

Class I. Latin Grammar. Read Sententiae Pueriles and Lily, Carmen de Moribus.

Class II. Latin Grammar. Read Cato~ Disticha Horalia and Aesop, Fabulae (in Latin). Class III. Latin Grammar. Head Erasmus, Colloquies and Terrence', Comedies, for colloquial Latin, and Ovid, De Tristibus, to begin poetry. Class IV. Latin Grammar. Read Ovid, Epistles and Metamorphoses (and perhaps other elegiac poets), and Caesar and perhaps Justin for History. Class V. Begin Greek Grammar, and continue with some review of La.tin Grammar. Head Sallust for history and begin Virgil, Bucolics.

Class VI. Greek Grannnar and the Greek Testament in the morning. Begin Cicero (possible Epistles and Offices), continue Virgil (and perhaps take up Martial).

Class VII. Greek Grammar. Read ndnor Greek poets (perhaps chosen from Hesiod, Theognis, Pindar, and Theocritus), Cicero, Orations, and Horace.

Class VIII. Hebrew Grammar and Psalter in the morning. Read Homer, Euripides, and Isocrates (and perhaps Demosthenes), ,Persius and Juvenal. (Perhaps Dionysius for history and Aratus). , 100

APPENDIX B

The following two prayers are ones with which Yci.lton was very

familiar, as they were spoken every day at St. Paul's School.

A Little Prayer to the Boy Jesus

Sweet Jesus, my Lord, who, as a boy in the twelfth year of thine age didst dispute in the temple at Jerusalem among the doctors so that they all marveled with amaze ment at thy sup~rexcellent wisdom, I petition thee that in this thy school, of which thou art ·protector and de fender, wherein I am taught daily in letters and wisdom, that, till that through knowledge of thee I worship thee and imitate thee, and so in this brief life to walk in the path of thy teaching, following in thy footsteps, so that departing from this life I may through thy grace happily arrive at some part of that glory to which thou hast attained.

Gaspar's Prayer We pray unto thee, Jesus Christ, who as a boy twelve years old, seated in the temple, taught the teachers themselves, to whom I am well pleased: hear him; who art the perfection of all the eternal wisdom of the Father, deign to illuminate our minds so that we learn thoroughly the lessons of virtuous literature, and that we use them to thy glory, who liveth and reigneth, with the Father and Holy Ghost1: ever one God, world without end.

The translation of these prayers is taken from Donald Lemen Clark's John Milton at St. Paul's School, pp. 45-46~ BIBLIOGfiAPHY

Aubrey, John. Aubrey's Brief Lives. Edited by Oliver Lawson Dick. London: Secker and Warburg, 1950.

Barker, Arthur E. 11 11ilton1 s Schoolmasters." Morlern Languap;e Review, XXXII (October, 1937), 517-536. Bush, Douglas. English Literature in the Earlier Seventeenth Century, 1600-1660. Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1945. . Cherbury, Edward Lord Herbert. De Veritate. Translated with introduction by Meyrlick H. Carre. University of Bristol: J. w. Arrowsmith, Ltd., 1645. Chillingworth, William. The Religion of Protestants, a Safe Way to Salvation. · Oxford: Leonard Lichfield, 1638.

Choisy, Eugene. 11 Giovanni Diodati. 11 The New Schaff-Herzog fielip;ious Encyclonedia. of Relip;ious. Knowledge. Edited by Sar.i.uel Hacaul.ey.~Jackson. New York and London: Funk and Waenalls Co., III, 1909. · Clark, Donald Lemen. John Milton at St. Paul's School. New York: Columbia University Press, 194$. Conkiin, George Newton. Biblical Criticism and Heresy in Hilton. New York: The Columbia University Press, 1949.

Darbishire, Helen •. The Early Lives of }lilton. London: Constable and Co., Ltd., 1932. Dorian, Donald Clayton. The English Diod«.tis. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1950. Encyclonedia of Religion. Edited by Vergillius T. A. Ferm. New York: The Philosophical Library, 19450 Fletcher, Harris Francis. The Intellectual Development of John Milton. Urbana: The University of Illinois Press, 2 vols., 1956. Gill, Alexander Sr. The Sacred Philosophy of the Holy Scriptures. Including the Second Edition of A Short Treatise Concerning the Trinity~ London: Anne Griffin for Joyce Norton, and Rich. Whitaker, 1635. Grace, W. J. "Paradise Lost." Studies in Philology, III (October, 1955), 583-591.

Hanford, James H. ;~ Milton Handbook. New York: F. s. Crofts and Co.; 1939. Hanford, James R. John Milton, Englishman. New York: F. s. Crofts and Co., 1924. .. 102 /

Hanford, James H. "The Youth of Milton." Studies in Shakcsneare, Milton and Donne. New York: The Macmillan Co., 1925. Henry, Nathaniel H. Milton's Puritanism. Doctoral Dissertation, University of North Carolina, 1941. Jefferson, Thomas. The Writings of Thomas Jefferson. Edited by Andrew A. Lipscomb. Washington, D. c.: The Thomas Jefferson Hemorial Association of the United States, XV, 1903. Johnson, Samuel. Chief Lives of the Poets. "Milton." New York: Holt, 1889.

Lord Herbert of Cherbury 1 s De Religione Laia. Edited and translated with a critical discussion of his life and philosophy by Harold R. Hutcheson. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1944. Masson, David. The Life of John Milton: Narrated in Connection with the Political,·· Ecclesiastical: and· Literary· History of His Time~: New York: P. Smith and Co., 1946. Macaulay, Rose. Milton. New York and London: Harper and Brothers, 1935. McNeill, John T., editor. Calvin: Institutes of Christian Religion. Philadelphia: The Westminste:r Press, 1960. Milton, John. John Milton Complete Poems and Major Prose. Edited by Merritt Y. Hughes, New York: The Odyssey Press, 1957. Milton John. The Works of John Yulton. Edited by Frank A. Patterson. New York: The Columbia University Press, 1931-1938.

Mullinger, James Bass. 11Thomas Young." Dictionary of National Biograuhy. Edited by Sir Leslie Stephens and Sir Sidney Lee Camberlege. London: · Oxford University Press, 1921-1922, 1937-1938, 1949-1950.

Parker, William R. "John Milton, Scrivener. 11 Modern Language Notes, LDC (December, 1944), 532-537. Paine, Thom.as. The Complete Writings of Thomas Paine. Edited by Phillips Foner. New York: The Citadel Press, I, 1945.• The Seventeenth-Century Prose and Poetry. Edited by Robert P. T. Coffin and Alexander M. Witherspoon. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1929. Toland, John, editor. The Prose Works of John Milton. 2 vols., London: 1698. Wood, Anthony a. Athenae Oxohienses. 2 vols., London: 1691-1692. VITA

Peter Allen Edmunds was born in Amsterdam, New York, 21 September~ 193.5. He moved shortly thereafter to Mississippi. Up to the fifth grade he received his elementary school education in Tennessee, Maryland, and Illinois. In Apr:tl, 1945, Mro Edmunds moved to Riehm.end, Virginia where he received the remainder of his elementary school education. He graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in June, 1953. In September, 1953, the graduate enrolled at the University of Richmond, Richmond, .Virginia, in pursuit of the Liberal Arts degree. Peter Edmunds, having completed his studies in English Literature, received the Bachelor of Arts degree in June, 1957. In March of the same year Peter

Edmunds married the former Helen Mary Snedeker, and in June went to '~ rk for Prudential Insurance Company of America in Newark, New Jersey. After working with the Prudential Insurance Compa.riy for three and one half years in Systems work, the candidate, desiring to move back to Virginia, accepted a position with Celanese Corporation of America in Pearisburg, Virginia •

Realizing that his main desire was to teach, the candidate resigned his job with the Celanese Corporation and returned to Richmond with his wife and three sons. He entered the Graduate School of the University of Richmond in February, 1963. Upon completing the requirements for the Master of Arts degree, the candidate plans to continue his graduate studies at the. University of North Carolina or Michigan State University in the fall of 1964.